Confessions
by Tima Yami's wife
Summary: [KaibaOC] Kaiba is secretly in love with a girl he knows. The problem? He doesn't understand love and the girl he loves is Yugi's adopted sister! Will he overcome his anger toward her brother and be able to confess everything to her? If he does, what does
1. First day and first love

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 1: First day and first love

Yugi woke up to the sun shining in from his window. Stretching, he pulled back the curtain that was in the middle of the room and looked at the bed where his adopted sister Tiki lay asleep. Her long, straight brown hair was in messes instead of in place like it always was. She was snoring and giggling in her sleep.

Trying not to laugh, he reached over and pinched her nose. She instantly woke up from not being able to breath. Her blue eyes held a great deal of annoyance when she realized it was her brother who woke her up. "Yugi, I thought I told you never to wake me up like that! Man…and the dream was just getting good," she grumbled in her child-like voice.

Yugi immediately knew what dream she was talking about. "You mean the one with your mystery man?"

Tiki nodded. "Yeah. I've gotten to the point where I know what his body structure looks like and what his voice sounds like. Yet, I've never once seen his face; it's always covered in some way. He was actually just about to tell me his name and show me his face…when YOU woke me up!"

Yugi laughed. "Sorry. But look at it this way; you may find him. Remember what today is?"

Tiki became excited for today was their first day of high school. Looking at the clock, they realized they were going to be late, jumped out of bed and started getting ready. Rushing, they made out the door and to the bus stop that would take them to Domino High School.

---

Once there, they met up with their friend Tea and started getting used to high school life. Yugi looked around and saw everyone looking at him strangely because of the game he was playing. Tiki hung out next to the door, waiting for people to come through so she could meet and greet them. At first no one would pay any attention but they soon warmed up to her.

Having had her fun after a few minutes, Tiki was about to go sit down behind her brother when the door opened up. There in the doorway stood a boy about her age. He was tall with brown hair and blue eyes. His uniform was pristine and he had a metal suitcase in his hand.

Her eyes grew wide and she blushed deeply looking at him. She tried to say something but couldn't find her voice. He looked down at her and scowled, "Move."

Tiki snapped back into reality and slowly moved aside. Pushing past her, he moved to his desk, not knowing that she was still watching him. Following her gaze, Tea pulled her to the side and asked, "Why are you staring at him like that?"

"At who? Like what?" Tiki asked in a daze, eyes still on him.

Tea pulled Tiki's head toward her and said, "I'm sorry to disappoint you but I think you don't stand a chance with him."

"Why? Who is he?"

"Seto Kaiba, son of—"

"Gozaburo Kaiba, president of Kaiba-Corp? Whoa."

Tea agreed. "Yeah, whoa. Look, take my advice and don't get involved with him. He'll only hurt you."

But it was already too late. Tiki felt something unexpected when she first saw Kaiba; recognition. She went over it many times in her head and reached a startling conclusion; Kaiba was her mysterious dream man. He fit all the physical characteristics and his voice also matched.

From then on, she ignored Tea's advice and tried to get to know Kaiba as much as she could. She would smile at him all the time and tried to talk to him about anything she could think of on a couple of occasions. She was able to get over her shyness but she still blushed whenever she saw him. At first Kaiba didn't want anything to do with her but that quickly faded.

---

He was working late in the computer lab one night in late October, getting homework from school and from his home studies done, when Tiki walked in. They were surprised to see each other and Tiki's face immediately reddened. Clearing her throat uneasily, she asked, "Seto…how come you're still here?"

"Work. What about you?"

Tiki playfully shrugged as she sat down at the computer next to him. Turning it on, she said, "Sometimes I sneak away from home and come here to work on stories."

Kaiba scoffed. "Stupid. At least I'M doing something productive."

Tiki smiled. "I AM doing something productive. I want to be a writer someday and what I'm working on now is the first story I'm going to publish."

Kaiba shook his head in disgust as he continued to work. "Come on. Wake up to reality. You'll never make it. Why bother?"

Tiki chuckled. "I'll never know unless I try."

Kaiba was surprised at her answer. He had never met anyone like Tiki, full of confidence and offering friendship to everyone. They continued to work side by side for a while, talking every now and then. At first, Kaiba was still rough with his tone but relaxed as time went by. He couldn't explain why but he felt at peace whenever he was around Tiki. 'What is this feeling?' he wondered to himself.

They were getting ready to leave a while later when his cell phone rang. Answering it, he heard Mokuba on the other line. Speaking low so Tiki wouldn't hear, he said, "Hey, Mokuba. …Thanks, kid. …I'll be a few more minutes. …Right, see you then. …Bye."

He hung up, only to find Tiki listening. "Who was that?" she asked.

Kaiba finished packing up. "My kid brother Mokuba. I got to go. Maybe I'll see you around sometime."

He was almost out the door when Tiki suddenly remembered something and called him back. "Wait. I have something to give you."

Kaiba rolled his eyes but went back. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a small wrapped box and gave it to him. Still smiling, she started to leave when Kaiba asked in confusion, "What's this?"

Tiki giggled. "Have you forgotten what day it is, Seto? It's October 25…your birthday. I had Tea look it up in the office since she's the class representative. Oh, one thing…promise not to open it until you're on your way home? Happy birthday, Seto."

With that, she opened the door to leave but Kaiba had to ask her something else. "Why did you get this for me? Also, why do you call me by my first name unlike everyone else?"

Tiki giggled again. "Come on, Seto…you must have some idea." With that, she winked at him and left.

Kaiba was stunned, not only that she went to all that trouble to find out about today but also that she even cared. Before that moment, the only one who really cared about his birthday was Mokuba. Remembering his brother, he packed up and left.

On the way home, Kaiba opened the gift Tiki gave him. Inside was a Seiko watch. Looking at it, he realized he already had one on his wrist. He was about to toss the gift when he remembered Tiki's smiling face. 'She went to all that trouble…for me, of all people.'

Smirking, he took off his and put it in his suitcase. Taking out the new watch, he noticed a piece of paper under it. After putting the new watch on, he read the note. "Seto, I hope you like the watch. Just thought I'd get you something special for your birthday…because you're worth it. Call me sometime. Tiki"

Kaiba looked on the other side and there was her phone number. Sighing, he put it in his pocket and it never left. The next day, he made no mention about happened the night before. He pretended that nothing happened so that people wouldn't get any ideas.

But when Tiki arrived, he looked at her, lifted his uniform sleeve to reveal the watch, and nodded to her. Her eyes lit up and she gave him a gentle smile. He wanted to smile back but couldn't. Instead, he just nodded again and looked away. Even so, he still felt Tiki's eyes on him until the teacher came in. From that day forward, things were different between Kaiba and Tiki.

Will Tiki get her "dream man?" Find out next time!


	2. Signs of Kaiba’s heart

Confession

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh. I just own the new characters.

Chapter 2: Signs of Kaiba's heart

Tiki, Yugi, and their friends were currently at Duelist Kingdom. Ever since the duel with the Kaiba imposter, Tiki was extremely worried about Kaiba. When everyone returned from the Shadow Realm and from the duel with Panik, she tried to sleep it off but couldn't. She kept thinking that Kaiba was dead and the thought in itself made her feel sick.

Giving up on sleep, she got up and stood out in the meadow, staring out at the sea and continued to think about him. The wind blowing was very cold but she didn't even feel it. Her older, birth sister Rose (now Ryou's big sister) had seen her leave the group and followed her out to the meadow. She watched her for a while and then approached her. "Tiki, are you OK? You seem so far away."

Tiki didn't turn around but answered anyway. "Rose…sisters are supposed to confide in one another, knowing that they would never tell the other's secret…right?"

Rose smiled and hugged Tiki from behind. "Of course. Even if you and I aren't legally related anymore, we'll always be blood sisters. So…what's going on? Thinking about a special someone?"

Tiki blushed but nodded. "Yeah, I am. I'm worried about him…what he's doing right now…if he's even alright. I have to admit; I am completely in love with him. But what hurts the most is the fact that…I know that he'll never love me…the way I love him. I tell myself that all the time…but I can't erase these feelings. They continue to grow every time I see him."

Rose hugged her sister tighter. "You're serious about this guy, aren't you? So tell me…who is it? Who's your special man?"

Before Tiki could answer, a helicopter appeared above them and landed near them. Everyone else joined them and all wondered the same; what the heck was going on? Their question was answered when Kaiba stepped out. Tiki gasped and smiled, feeling very relieved. "He's alright. Oh, thank you, God."

Rose's eyes went from Tiki to Kaiba a number of times and figured it out. She whispered in Tiki's ear, "HE'S your special someone? I can see why you'd be hurt."

Tiki didn't answer but slightly smiled. She continued to watch Kaiba until he started to leave after defeating Joey and warning Yugi. But before he left, he motioned for Tiki to come to him. She did, blushing all the way, and asked, "What's up?"

Kaiba looked at her for a while and shook his head. "Nothing. I just…for some reason I can't explain…had to see your face again." Tiki's eyes grew a little wide at what he just said but he ignored that. "How are you doing?"

Tiki started to get a little uneasy but kept her cool. "Umm…I'm doing OK…now that I know you're alright."

Kaiba was a little surprised that she said that. "You were worried about me? Why?"

Tiki blushed a little deeper and smiled sadly. "Well…Kemo said that you were dead. That devastated me, the thought of you gone. You're probably wondering why I feel this way. Well…this is difficult to say. I don't know where to begin. I don't even think I SHOULD explain."

Kaiba nodded, disappointed that she couldn't find the words he wanted to hear. He knew he had to get to Pegasus' castle to rescue Mokuba but, for some reason, he couldn't move. He wanted to spend more time with Tiki for some unknown reason. He realized that, every time he was with her, he did things that were not like him. He couldn't explain or even understand what was going on in his heart. He was slowly but surely becoming a stranger to himself. Finally he made his feet move, but they moved toward Tiki for he wanted to do something first before he left.

Tiki was still thinking of how to tell Kaiba how she felt about him when she felt his hand stroking her cheek. She looked him in his eyes and saw a look that was unlike any look she'd ever seen in him. It wasn't anger, or hatred, or even his ego. It actually looked a bit like…love.

Finally Kaiba left, feeling his chest squeeze. He tried to ignore it but couldn't fully. He looked back and saw Tiki there. She had turned around to rejoin her friends but looked back as well. They looked at each other for a bit, almost living the moment.

Then Rose called out to her to join her. Tiki acknowledged but took one more look at him. She smiled a gentle smile at him, waved to him her goodbye and joined to her sister. Kaiba looked unaffected but, deep down, he felt his chest get even tighter. Shaking it off, he continued toward Pegasus' castle.

---

The rest of the trip, Tiki was in a very good mood. It seemed like nothing could ever faze her. She still felt Kaiba's hand on her cheek and would blush whenever she thought of that moment. She had never seen him act like that since she met him but she enjoyed seeing that side of him.

But her entire view of Kaiba's thoughts toward her completely changed when he challenged Yugi to a duel in order to get inside the castle. She started to join Yugi at the end of the walkway when Kaiba grabbed her arm, stopping her. Yugi saw this and asked, "Kaiba, what are you doing?"

Kaiba scowled as he pulled Tiki next to him. "Tiki will not duel with you this time. She is going to stay by my side. If you have objections to that…you will forfeit your star chips here and now!"

Tiki slightly blushed at what he said but nodded to Yugi. "It's alright, Yugi. You'll be fine."

Yugi was unsure but went along with it in order to keep his star chips. Throughout the whole, Yami and Kaiba were impressive with Kaiba's dueling disk. Tiki watched the whole duel from next to Kaiba and enjoyed every minute of it. She couldn't figure out who would win since they were both doing excellent. But, every now and again, she would sneak a loving look at Kaiba. Despite the fact that he was colder than ever, she enjoyed being by his side.

By that point, Yami had fired the Living Arrow fused with Mammoth Graveyard into the Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon and had destroyed one head. Kaiba was in a complete daze. Tiki started to get worried and shook his arm to wake up. He did and looked at her, totally lost. Seeing the worried look in her eyes, he took one last desperate measure to win.

He took Tiki's hand and backed up to the edge of ledge. Yami was surprised that Kaiba would do this but was even more surprised that he took Tiki with him. Kaiba simply dared Yami to attack one last time. But if he did, he and Tiki would be knocked off, thus falling to their death.

Yami, at first, refused to hurt Kaiba and his friend/vessel of his wife, Tiki's dark side Tima (1). But Tiki shouted, "Yugi, forget about me! Attack! Attack so you can save Grandpa!"

Yami agreed and started to attack with Celtic Guardian. But Yugi stopped him. Tiki was stunned that he stopped the attack. "What are you doing, you idiot? You just blew your one chance to save Grandpa!" She groaned in frustration while Kaiba destroyed Celtic Guardian and the rest of Yugi's life points.

When they got off the ledge, Tiki started to go to Rose when Kaiba stopped her. After hearing a lecture from Tea and not being moved, he simply took Yugi's star chips and headed toward the castle with Tiki. Rose stopped in front of them and demanded, "Where do you think you're going with my little sister?"

Kaiba was as cold as ever as he shoved Rose out of his way and entered the castle with Tiki next to him. At first Kemo tried to keep Tiki from entering since she had no star chips but Pegasus told him through his earpiece to let her in.

When they got to the door to the balcony above the dueling arena, Kaiba stopped and faced Tiki. Looking at him a little confused, she asked, "Seto…what's going on? Why did you act like that back there?"

Kaiba didn't answer. "I got to go rescue my brother right now but I'd like to see you after I teach Pegasus a lesson."

With that, he took Tiki's hand and kissed it. Tiki's eyes grew wide and she blushed deeply. Face hard, he went to free his little brother. All the way over to the arena, he wondered why he kissed her hand. He did it without even realizing what he was doing. 'I couldn't help it,' he finally admitted. 'Even though I don't understand it…all I know is that…Tiki's special to me.'

Tiki stood there for a while, looking at the hand he kissed. She felt warmth in her heart as she went to the balcony to watch the duel. Finally her brother and friends joined up with her. Seeing them, she smiled. "Hey guys! Come join me; I got the best seat in the house."

They joined her side and watched the rest of the duel with her. When Kaiba lost the game and his soul, Tiki just broke down. Sobbing in her arm, she growled, "Damn you, Pegasus…damn you, Pegasus…DAMN YOU, PEGASUS!"

At that moment, Tiki's reason for winning changed. She no longer cared about rescuing her grandpa. All that mattered to her was getting Kaiba back.

(1) For the entire story about Tiki's dark side (Tima) and Yami, read "Tima and Atem."

Will Kaiba ever admit his feelings for Tiki? Find out next time!


	3. Real and virtual confusion

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh. I just own the new characters.

Chapter 3: Real and virtual confusion

Duelist kingdom had come and gone and Battle City was coming to a close as well. Malik had taken hold of many people on the ship, including Tiki's dark side (1). Kaiba was getting a little worried but didn't show it. That night, as he was preparing his deck for the finals, he kept thinking about Tiki for he thought that she was the one who got injured by Ra. Finishing his deck, he tried to do some work but her face kept popping up in his head. Growling, he got up and asked himself, "What is going on with me? Why does SHE keep appearing in my head? What is this?"

At that moment, a knock sounded at the door. Looking at the time and seeing it was almost midnight, Kaiba groaned and asked gruffly, "Who is it?"

"It's me," a familiar voice sounded.

Kaiba's eyes softened a little as he went to the door and opened it. There in the doorway was Tiki in a pink nightgown. He was relieved to see her but his face didn't show it. "Tiki…nice to see you on your feet so soon."

Tiki laughed. "You make it sound like the injury was really bad. I can handle an attack from that guy." In her mind, she said to her recovered dark side, 'Only for you would I pretend to be the one who was injured, my friend.'

Kaiba nodded. "It was a serious injury. You almost died. You were in a coma since that duel and…well, what can I do for you?"

Tiki smiled. "Just wanted to wish you good luck for tomorrow."

Kaiba raised his eyebrow. "You're wishing me luck…when we might fight each other tomorrow?"

Tiki shook her finger in a no fashion. "Mm-mm. That's where you're wrong. You won't be fighting ME; you'll be fighting my brother. He's the one you want to defeat, not me. I just stand next to him and imitate him."

Kaiba nodded. "You're right."

Tiki nodded. "Well, I'll let you get some sleep. You'll need it for tomorrow."

She turned around to leave and Kaiba felt his body move on his own. He hugged her from behind and held her tightly. Tiki blushed deeply and asked nervously, "W-What are you…doing?"

Kaiba wasn't sure what to say so he gave her his honest answer. "I don't know. I just…needed to hug you…after what happened. The doctor said you were on the verge of death…and…"

Tiki smiled and touched his arms with both hands. "But I'm not dead…and I'm not going to die. I'm alright. Really."

Kaiba let her go. "I know."

Tiki smiled and turned around to face him again. "Even you're not sure why you hugged me…I'm glad you did. Now you better get some sleep. You want to be at the top of your game tomorrow."

Kaiba nodded. "You too."

Tiki went down the hall but stopped momentarily. Looking back at him, she said, "See you in the morning."

With that, she turned and walked back to hers and Yugi's room. Kaiba watched her until she was out of sight, then went back into his room. Once inside, he groaned and ran his hand through his hair. "What happened out there? What is going on with me? What is this power she has over me? Well…maybe when the finals are over tomorrow…this hold she has over me will hopefully disappear." Little did he know that they wouldn't be getting to the finals as soon as they had hoped.

---

The next morning, as they were getting closer to the island, Noah appeared. Using certain methods with his computers, he hacked into the blimp's computer and altered the course of the blimp to his ship from the sea. When they finally landed in his fortress, everyone got out and headed toward the sound of Noah's voice.

When they got to the main room, Kaiba got a big surprise. His former colleagues, the Big 5, were there. After they explained everything, including the new rules with the Deck Master, everyone fell into what seemed like a bottomless pit. Tiki seemed the most scared out of all of them for she was terrified of long drops. Suddenly she felt herself be ripped into two. She groaned loudly in pain and passed out.

When she awoke, she was next to her brother on a meadow in front of a lake. Waking her brother up, they started to wonder where everyone else was. As they were looking around, the leader of the Big 5, Gansley in the form of Deep Sea Warrior, appeared on top of the lake and challenged them to a duel. Yami and Tima took over and proceeded.

In a forest far from the meadow where Yugi and Tiki ended up, Kaiba came to. Looking around, he saw that Mokuba and Tiki were lying near by. He shook them awake and they proceeded to find an exit.

As she was walking with Kaiba, Tiki looked down at herself. She saw that she was in a completely different outfit than she had ever worn before. She was no longer in her lucky white dress which she was wearing throughout the entire tournament. Now she had on a red shirt and jeans and was barefoot. Her Millennium Puzzle wasn't around her neck. Feeling her hair, she felt that it was in a braid.

Kaiba, who was too preoccupied with finding Noah and getting them out of this world, noticed her outfit and hair style. Raising his eyebrow, he asked, "When did you get into that outfit?"

Tiki shrugged. "I don't know. I don't get it. I hate wearing pants, especially jeans. That's why I never wear them."

Kaiba continued to look around for an exit but smirked at Tiki's comment. "Well, you should. It's a good look for you."

Tiki turned bright red and smiled. "I'll…I'll consider that."

---

What neither of them knew was that Noah had, in a way, split Tiki into two different people for both Yugi and Kaiba. The one with Yugi was the original, for he knew that the two of them always dueled together. The one with Kaiba was a computer program of her whom Noah called Tiki 2, one that was similar to the original in looks and attitude.

Seeing the way Kaiba was behaving with the program he created, Noah grinned. "Just like I thought; Seto may act smart but he still can't tell the difference between the original and a duplicate." He laughed a little. "Such a weakness is one of the many examples why he shouldn't have taken over Kaiba-Corp."

---

During the first half of their journey, both Tiki and Tiki 2 didn't know either of them existed. Tiki remained with her brother, trying to find where their friends were. Tiki 2 stayed with Kaiba and saw the replays of his memories of when he was a little kid. Everything was going fairly smoothly for them, despite the situation they were in. That is, until Noah kidnapped Mokuba and Tiki 2 and the original met up with Kaiba.

(1) Full story in chapter 22 of "Tima and Atem."

What will happen? Find out next time!


	4. Noah’s plan and their escape

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh. I just own the new characters.

Chapter 4: Noah's plan and their escape

Nezbitt, in Tristan's body, had appeared and attacked Kaiba with a wooden sword. Kaiba fended him off with a metal rod but Nezbitt still escaped with two people; Mokuba and Tiki 2. Escaping on a motorcycle, he delivered them to Noah, knowing that Kaiba would come for them.

Noah grinned and took a good look at the program he created. Tiki 2 was sitting next to Mokuba and watching the duel between Kaiba and Leichter. 'Hmm…one of my more…better subjects. Even if she's just a program, Seto still thinks she's the original. If my instincts are correct…I would say that he loves her. She will be perfect for taking apart Seto!"

---

Back at the duel, Kaiba was struggling in his duel against Leichter because of the Satellite Cannon that kept firing at him from outer space. When the whole gang arrived, Tiki called out to him. Confused, he looked behind him and saw Tiki. "How did you escape…and change back into your dress?" he asked her.

Tiki was more confused than him. "Say what?"

"You were captured with my brother by Nezbitt! Plus, you weren't wearing that outfit! You were wearing…jeans!"

Everyone looked at Tiki who was blushing five shades of red. "WHAT? I never wear pants of any kind, especially not jeans! Besides I was with my brother the whole time! Noah must be playing a trick on you!"

Kaiba growled. "He's tricking me, all right. He's tricking me with you! You're nothing but a cheap imitation of Tiki, a program that Noah created just to mess with me!"

Tiki's eyes widened at the fact that he didn't believe her and that he just yelled at her. She wanted to say something else but decided against saying anything else in fear of getting yelled at again.

---

In his room, Noah's plan was turning out to be more difficult than he imagined. Even after reminding Mokuba and Tiki 2 of all the times Kaiba mistreated them, it still wasn't enough. They both remained firm and continued to support the person they loved. Noah was extremely surprised, not only at Mokuba's persistent but also at Tiki 2's as well. Despite being a program that he himself made, she still remained Kaiba's love. The reason she was like that was because Noah accidentally made her too much like the original.

Finally, out of total desperation, Noah created a stimulation of Kaiba which he used to convince them that the person they loved didn't care for either of them. Fortunately for him, that was enough to convince them. For his final act, he brainwashed Mokuba and rewrote a bit of Tiki 2's program. He made Mokuba believe that he was his older brother. As for Tiki 2, she believed that he was the love of her life instead of Kaiba.

---

Finally Noah faced Kaiba himself. With every turn they traded back and forth chipping away at each other's life points. Just when Kaiba was about to deliver the final attack, Mokuba and Tiki 2 appeared in front of Noah and blocked him with their bodies. Tiki's eyes grew extra wide when she saw Tiki 2. "Whoa. Maybe SHE'S the one Seto was talking about," she murmured.

Kaiba was as shocked as she was, but for different reasons. Not only did his brother was protecting their enemy but "Tiki" was as well. Noah took note of this and decided to push Kaiba's buttons. He walked up behind Tiki 2 and put his arm around her, pulling her in closer to him. She smiled passionately and Kaiba felt his heart rip and his anger rise. 'Why the hell is Tiki allowing that brat to do that to her? She looks like she's…enjoying it! Damn it…that's what I did to her! No one but me should be allowed to hold her like that!'

This time, he knew what he said. He was beginning to understand what was going on inside of him. He still didn't know the name of the feeling but he was aware that it was there. 'Even if I don't know what this is…I know that Tiki is the cause. She is special to me…and I'm willing to go all the way to protect her!'

Noah saw the effect this was having on Kaiba so he decided to push him even further. He started to stroke her face the way Kaiba did at Duelist Kingdom but that was too much for Kaiba. He yelled, "GET YOUR HANDS OFF HER, YOU LITTLE BRAT!"

Noah obeyed but not before doing one more thing. He turned Tiki 2's head toward his and kissed her deeply. Kaiba's mind shattered. He almost lost control and was going to run over there and destroyed Noah but he knew better than that.

Tiki's eyes grew wide again when she watched Noah kiss her duplicate. Her jaw slightly dropped and she felt completely disgusted. 'Ew…a little kid kissing a duplicate of me?' she thought to herself as she shuddered.

Toward the end of the duel, Mokuba started to remember the truth and break free from the brainwashing. When this happened, Tiki 2 flickered. Tiki saw this and pointed it out to Kaiba. "See, Seto? I told you that Tiki you were with was just a program!"

Kaiba looked and saw it as well. He then shouted at Noah again, "Why did you create that…that THING to imitate a special person that no one can replace?"

Tiki blushed deeply at what she just heard. 'Did he just call me…special?'

Noah just laughed. "I created her because I didn't want you to feel lonely, Seto." His voice was dripping with sarcasm.

Kaiba growled but continued to try to get his brother back. He didn't bother with Tiki 2 for he now knew she was a fake and that the one behind him was the authentic one. Finally Mokuba remembered everything. When he did, Tiki 2 shattered. When she was destroyed, all of her data was downloaded into Tiki's brain and she saw everything the program did. Mokuba started to run toward his brother and was about to touch him when Noah turned them both into statues.

Yami and Tima had seen enough and took over the duel. With a little help from everyone, they were able to defeat Noah. But then Gozaburo himself showed up and told everyone that they would never leave this world. Also, he said that he was going to digitize the entire world and rule over everything.

Noah helped them escape and sacrificed himself to save them. While he was running toward the blimp that was already taking off, Kaiba threw Mokuba toward Devlin and picked Tiki up. Before she could figure out what he was doing, he jumped on the blimp with her on his back.

Putting her down, Kaiba headed toward the cockpit to speed up the blimp. Tiki wavered a bit because the surprise and rush she got but was able to recover. Finally, they were able to escape. While everyone was watching the fortress burn from the missile attack, Mokuba dropped a bundle of irises into the sea.

Kaiba scoffed and started to turn away when Tiki grabbed his arm. "Seto…what you said then…about calling me special…did you mean it?"

Kaiba looked deep in her eyes and slightly nodded. "Yes…you are a very special person…at least…to me. Now know this; I don't fully understand what's going on inside of me. All I know is that…you're the cause. One day, I'll understand what's happening to me…but until then…" He couldn't continue for he didn't know what else to say. Instead he sighed, put something in her hand and walked off.

Looking in her hand, Tiki saw that it was a gold heart shaped locket. Blushing but smiling, she put on with her angel necklace Yugi gave her when she joined the family. Serenity noticed the locket first and said, "That's a pretty locket. What's in it?"

Tiki looked inside and saw there was nothing. Smiling and shaking her head, she said almost to herself, "Nothing yet. But I'll put a picture in it…once I find a very special one that belongs there."

When will Kaiba understand his feelings? Find out next time!


	5. Can bitter pasts lead to bright futures?

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 5: Can a bitter past lead to a bright future?

A couple days had gone by since Battle City. Tiki stood in front of the Kaiba mansion, trying to settle the butterflies down in her stomach. She was about to ask him out on a date. She knew he had become very resentful lately because she and Yugi won Battle City but she let it slide. She knew he had feelings for her. She actually didn't really know if he did. She just had a feeling by what she's heard and seen. "If he didn't like me, why would he call me special and give me this locket?" she asked herself, holding the locket which Kaiba gave her and that she always wore.

Gathering up all her courage, she walked up to the front door, took a deep breath, and rang the doorbell. To her surprise, Mokuba answered the door. Smiling at him, she said, "Hello, Mokuba. Is your brother home?"

Mokuba shook his head. "No, you actually just missed him. He left for the park a little while ago. Said he wanted to think a few things through."

"Oh…okay. Guess I'll go there." She started to leave when Mokuba grabbed her wrist, stopping her. "What are you doing?" she asked him.

"Please…" he pleaded. "Don't go upset my brother right now. He's still furious about losing his tournament. Seeing you will probably just fuel his anger."

Tiki realized that Mokuba was right. Kaiba was indeed enraged for losing the tournament he organized to her and her brother. That much she knew…but she still wanted to see him. She brushed Mokuba off and started off for the park. Mokuba stood there for a minute. 'Oh I hope Seto doesn't lash out at her. It's really not her fault.'

---

Kaiba sat on a park bench at the park. He was extremely furious that he lost the title "#1 Duelist in the World" to Yugi and Tiki again. Not able to take it anymore, he started to rant to no one. "I can't stand it! Why can't I be the best duelist around? That's what I was until Yugi and Tiki showed up in my life! It would have been better if I never met them!"

"Then you and I would have never met, Seto," said a familiar voice from behind. Kaiba looked behind him and saw Tiki smiling sweetly at him. Seeing her, he slightly calmed down. "Is this seat taken?" she asked, indicating to the spot next to him. He shook his head and she sat down next to him.

For a while, they sat in silence, waiting for the other to say something. Finally, hating the silence and wanting to break it, Kaiba spoke up. "So…what brings you around?"

Tiki blushed deeply. "I was looking for you. How are you doing? After…Battle City…I mean." She had to force that last part out, trying hard not to upset him.

Kaiba spat out, "How do you think I feel? I lost the tournament! My own tournament! That was my last chance to regain the glory you and your brother stole from me!" Once he started talking about it, he couldn't stop nor did he even want to. "I mean, you don't know what's it like to lose something you worked so hard to gain! That's what happened to me with my dueling!"

"Seto—"

"I worked hard to become a great duelist! That was where my pride came from! Without it, I seem to have lost everything! My little brother looks up to me because I seem strong! That comes from my winning duels!"

"Seto!" Tiki grabbed his hand and stopped him from going on. "You still have your glory! You haven't lost it at all! Your brother still looks up to you, even if you lose a few duels! He doesn't care! He loves you either way!"

Kaiba scoffed and took his hand back roughly. "What do you know? You have the title 'Queen of Games' alongside your brother! How the hell would you have any idea about what I feel?"

Tiki bowed her head and a tear slid down her face. Kaiba was speechless. He never seen Tiki cry in all the time he knew her. She lifted her head and looked at him through teary eyes. "I would give up all the titles in the world if it means you pain. Nothing means anything to me if it would just make you upset. I would give anything…even my Millennium Puzzle…to be with you."

Kaiba couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Tiki…what are you saying?"

Tiki swallowed hard and took a deep breath. "What I'm saying is…………………………I love you Seto."

Kaiba, not knowing what to do or even how to respond, got up and walked away. Refusing to give up, Tiki went after him "What are you going, Seto?"

Kaiba stopped but didn't look at Tiki. He wanted to say what he truly felt but instead said the opposite of his desire. "I can't accept your love or your family's offer of friendship. Those things are for the weak."

Tiki recognized that line from many times before. "You don't mean that, Seto."

"Yes, I do," Kaiba answered sharply. "Those things are only for losers. I consider myself the strongest out of all those losers you call friends and that is because I depend on myself and myself alone. In my view, anyone who cares for someone like that is nothing but weak."

Tiki finally heard enough. She crossed her arms and said angrily, "That's not you talking; that's your stepfather talking!"

That was the last straw. Kaiba turned around and slapped Tiki across the face. As she cradled her face extremely hurt physically and emotionally, he yelled, "How dare you compare me to my stepfather! He and I are not alike in any way! YOU UNDERSTAND ME?"

Suddenly he stopped because he remembered an incident in his childhood. Once when he disagreed with his stepfather, Gozaburo slapped him and shouted at him for daring to standing up to him like that. Panting, Kaiba started shaking and said, "What have I done? I AM turning into my stepfather! Tiki…forgive me."

He tried to touch her but she swatted his hand away. "Please…don't. You don't have to try to be nice. I now know the truth; you don't have room in your soul for love or kindness."

Looking at him, Kaiba saw that more tears were falling. "I don't know why it took me so long to figure this out. I've offered my love and support to you many times…and you would always strike at me in some way. But you don't have to worry; I won't bother you ever again. In fact…this is the last time you will ever see me again. Good-bye…Seto."

In saying this, Tiki turned and ran out of the park, leaving a trail of tears behind her. Kaiba stood there reflecting on what she just said to him. Finally he collapsed to his knees. 'Why? Why is it, no matter how many times I try and after everything I've done, my stepfather always comes back to haunt me? I don't want to be like him in any way. But Tiki's right; I AM turning into him!'

In anger and sorrow, he punched the ground so hard that his knuckles began to bleed. Feeling something slid down his cheek, he touched it and realized that it was a tear. He sat there for a while astonished because he had never cried in his life. Gritting his teeth, he ran toward his house, more tears falling the entire way.

Will Kaiba and Tiki be able to have a future or will they stay away from each other for the rest of their lives? Find out next time!


	6. A much needed talk

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 6: A much needed talk

Since Tiki left her Millennium Puzzle home when she left, her dark side Tima stayed home. Yami let her cover her tattoo with her hand so their souls wouldn't be connected and she enjoyed her freedom (1). She hung around and let her curly brown hair go wild. But, after a while, she started to get lonely. Fixing her hair with her free hand, she was just about to go into her Puzzle when she heard the door open and close. She went to the door and saw Tiki, holding her cheek and crying. "What's wrong, aibou? Are you alright? What happened?" Tima asked Tiki, going over to help her in.

Tiki didn't look at her dark side but whimpered, "I told him…I loved him…and…he…struck me…"

Tima didn't know what to say. She knew her aibou loved Kaiba with all her heart and they both believed that he loved her as well. Now that this happened, she figured that her aibou wouldn't be able to recover. She started to walk toward Tiki but she ran past her dark side and up the stairs. When Tiki ran past her, Tima heard what she was thinking. 'Now that I know the truth…there's no need for me to be here. If I were to just die…Seto wouldn't have to bother with me anymore.'

Just then, Yugi stepped in, barely moving out of the way when Tiki ran past him. Yami appeared at his side and both wondered what just happened. But before either of them could ask Tima, she said in a very cold voice, "I'm going over to Kaiba's and give him a piece of my mind."

"You can't. They probably don't want to see each other after this. And besides, if you're talking about alone…he'll never see you," Yugi said, immediately jumping to conclusions.

Tima chuckled and snapped her fingers with her free hand. To both boys surprise, she became almost visible. She was still a little see-through but now others could see her, just like a ghost. She smirked and said, "It's just a spell that I've had for some time." Seeing Yami's look of disbelief, she chuckled. "Don't complain, Ai; it only works once. I've been saving it for an emergency and I think this qualifies as one. Now if you'll excuse me…Kaiba needs to have a talking to."

With that, she left. Yugi looked at Yami and asked, "Another I, do you think she can do this?"

Yami shrugged. "I honestly don't know, aibou. Kaiba has never budged all those times we tried to talk to him about that ego of his and his behavior. But Tima is capable of such things. So…we'll find out."

---

Tima now stood in front of Kaiba's bedroom door. She was somehow able to sneak in and avoid running into Mokuba, who would have made her leave. After looking around and making such no one was there, she knocked on the door and said, "Kaiba, open up this instant! You and I need to talk right now!"

From the other side of door came a familiar voice. "Go away Tiki!"

Tima sweatdropped. 'We really ought to let everyone know our separate names. This is getting really old,' she thought to herself. But she stopped when she realized how different Kaiba's voice sounded. It wasn't dripping with his ego or his anger like always; it actually had a hint of…sadness in it. Nevertheless, she passed through the door, thanking Ra that the spell let her go through things.

There, she saw Kaiba laying on his bed, looking like he was in deep thought. But she could barely tell because he had all the curtains drawn and the lights off. Sighing and shaking her head, she turned on the nearest light. Kaiba sat up in surprise and saw her for the first time. For a long time, he sat there in disbelief. Finally he got up demanding, "How did you get in here, Tiki? I never heard the door open."

Tima sweatdropped again and covered her eyes with her free hand. Sighing, she said, "OK; first…I'm not Tiki. I'm the spirit inside her Puzzle, the one you always face when you challenge her and Yugi. Second," she said scoffing, "I'm a spirit. Doors and walls don't mean anything to me; I just pass right through them. But enough about me. You and I need to talk about what you did to Tiki. Do you even have the faintest idea WHAT you did to her?"

Kaiba didn't know what she meant but answered anyway. "Well…I struck her…yelled at her…snapped at her…"

"And…?" Not getting a response, Tima sighed. "You've done something much worse. Because of today…she's considering suicide."

"What? Why?"

"Because she believes that, without her around, you can live a happy life. After all the signs you've given her, she believes that with all her heart."

Kaiba didn't know what to say. To hear that a girl would be willing to kill herself for his happiness…it was shocking to say the least. No one had ever openly said they would do that for him before. "But…why would she do that?" he finally asked.

Tima smiled a sad smile. "Do you really have to ask? It's because she loves you, Kaiba. She loves you with all her heart. And by the way I saw you lying there…I'd say you love her too."

After a long time, Kaiba finally nodded. Getting the answer she expected, she continued. "Then why don't you just tell her? It will make her happier more than anything else in this world. Your happiness is the most important thing to her. It's more important than her friends, more important than her family; it's even more important than…her life. For a long time, I never knew what she saw in you that no one but your brother did. But now I think I do; she probably sees what you were. When you were a boy at the orphanage, you were a happy, care-free, loving soul. That part of you is still in you, Kaiba. He's buried deep within you under a thick shroud of darkness. That shadow was formed with a lot of help from your stepfather. When that man adopted you, that's when all the trouble began."

"What the hell do you mean? He got Mokuba and I out of there. He taught me everything I needed to know to make KaibaCorp the way it is today. I admit he was the biggest snake on the face of the earth but what the hell are you talking about?"

"He was and did everything you just said. But he also did you more damage than you know."

Kaiba raised his eyebrow. "Can't you speak in a way that I can understand? What kind of damage did he do to me? Tell me that much…if you can!"

Tima looked sad for a moment before she answered. "He made you…forget."

Kaiba was more confused than ever. "Forget…what?"

Tima then gave an answer that would shake Kaiba for the rest of his life. "Forget how to laugh. Forget how to have friends. Forget how to be kind. Forget how to forgive. Forget how to have fun. Forget how to love. But the one thing he made you forget how to do…has done the most damage to your brother and Tiki. He made you forget…how to smile. She told me a while ago that the number one thing that would make her die happy would be to see you smile. You know you have never smiled the whole time the gang has known you? You've only given us smirks or cold smiles. What she wants to see is, what I call, a pure smile. This may surprise you but when she saw the records that that program had seen while we were in Noah's virtual world, the ones of yours and Mokuba's past…her heart melted when she saw them. Do you know why? It was because back then…you knew how to smile. You know, I probably shouldn't tell you this since she made me promise to keep it a secret…but I think you should know. Tiki told me something an hour ago that really touched my heart."

---

_Tiki was picking out a dress to wear for when she would ask Kaiba out. She kept taking random ones out, looking them over, and then flinging them over to her bed where Tima was with her hand on her tattoo. "Tell me something, aibou," Tima said, "What is it about Kaiba that made you fall in love with him? I don't get it and, frankly, I don't think anyone else does either. I mean…all the times I've seen him, he's presented himself as a big jerk with an even bigger ego. As you know, he never smiles at anyone, not even his brother. What's up with that? Can you clear up this confusion for me?"_

_Tiki chuckled as she was putting on her favorite casual pink dress. "True, Seto has never smiled once since I met him, which was some time ago. After seeing what he went through with his stepfather…I understand why. I want to re-teach him how to laugh and smile. However I don't want him to smile at just anyone. I want him to smile at me. That would make me happy beyond my wildest dreams. If I could get so as much as one tiny smile from Seto…I would treasure it for all eternity. Now I know it'll be tough to re-teach him since it's been many years since those happy times but I think all three of us…Seto, Mokuba, and I…will be greatly benefited."_

_Tima laughed. "I can't believe what I'm hearing. You're willing to go that far just to satisfy this weird need of yours?"_

_Tiki looked at her dark side with a very serious look on her face. "Who said I was going to do it for me? I'm going to do this for Seto. He's the one who will benefit the most out of this, not me. He'll be much happier…which is something he needs to be."_

---

Kaiba was at a loss of words. What Tima had just told him made him realize what he had become. He collapsed to his knees and held his head while he was shaking and trying his hardest not to cry. But his attempts were in vain; he started to cry silently. He had never imagined how much damage his stepfather had inflicted on him or how much he had hurt Mokuba and Tiki over the years.

Tima wasn't done with him yet. She decided to add something else. "Actually, now that I think about it, I still don't understand why she loves you the way she does. I mean, whenever she sees you, her feelings for you grow…but so does the feeling of sadness."

Kaiba looked up at her in confusion again. "What do you mean sadness?"

Tima looked down at him slightly glaring at him. "The sadness I'm talking about is the sadness of knowing that you'll never love her the way she loves you. She knows that and she tries to not think about it. But she is reminded of that every time she sees or thinks you."

Kaiba felt hurt again and started defending himself. "What are you talking about? I love her as much as she loves me, maybe even more."

Tima rolled her eyes and put her free arm on her hip. "Oh and you showed her your love when you slapped her? Tell me, how did that display your love for her? Hmm?"

Kaiba felt her heart rip and broke down again. Tima saw the condition he was in and decided to stop. But as she turned to leave, Kaiba stopped her. "How…can I…tell Tiki…how much…I love her?"

She was surprised to hear this. "How much DO you love her?"

Kaiba was once again at a loss for words. Tima just smiled and shook her head. She then kneeled down to his eye-level and wiped some tears away. He looked at her, completely lost, and she put her free hand on his shoulder. "I suggest you think about Tiki and remember everything she did to you. I think, if you do that, you'll come to some understanding with your feelings." With that, she smiled and disappeared.

(1) For more information on the tattoo, read chapter 12 of "Tima and Atem."

What will Kaiba think about? Find out next time!


	7. Kaiba’s memories

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 7: Kaiba's memories

Kaiba looked at the place where Tima was a second ago. He then remembered what she said to him before she disappeared; "I suggest that you think about Tiki and remember everything she did to you. I think, if you do that, you'll come to some understanding with your feelings." He got up, wiped his tears away, laid back down on his bed, and started to think about the girl he loved.

At first, he couldn't think of anything. But then he remembered something that he always had with him. Reaching into his pocket and getting out his wallet, he took out a photo Tiki gave him at the end of Battle City. It was a picture of her smiling. But as he studied it closely, he realized that the look in Tiki's eyes wasn't really friendship; it looked more like love. Sighing, he held the picture on top of his heart and wondered what to remember about her.

He wasn't really good at this sort of thing and he knew that. But he looked at his watch and felt his heart glow. That watch was something Tiki had given him for his birthday their first year of high-school. He already had one at that time but he wore hers instead for some reason he couldn't explain at the time. Even though he knew it was rude, he was curious and looked on the Internet to see how much it cost. He was surprised at the price for his watch; 170 dollars! That was a small price for him but he knew it was expensive for Tiki.

---

_A few days after he found out the price for his gift, Kaiba approached her about it at her locker. "Tiki, why did you pay so much for me? It doesn't make any sense."_

_Tiki smiled. "You're worth it," she said._

_Kaiba still didn't understand. "Why?" Tiki looked at him with a look of pure admiration before she walked outside, listening to her CD all the way._

_Kaiba watched her stop at the doorway and wait for her brother while she started to sing to her music. His breath was taken away from her singing voice. Despite the fact that she had a child-like voice, she had a beautiful singing voice. Even though he wasn't a music fan, he felt touched by her singing from some reason. Yugi joined his side as he started putting on his shoes and Kaiba asked, "Do you have any idea why she spent so much on me?"_

_Yugi shook his head and looked at his sister, who waved at them. "No idea. But I'll tell ya…she saved up all her allowances and did a lot of odd jobs for everyone around for quite some time before she got enough. When I asked her why, she just said that you were worth every penny."_

---

Kaiba sighed. "A wretched jerk like me…worth every penny?" he murmured. "Hardly."

After a few minutes of trying to think of a memory, he drifted off to sleep and had a dream that left him shaken. He was walking in a shroud of darkness, wandering with no destination in mind. All around him he heard his stepfather yelling commands and insults toward him. He tried to block the yells by covering his ears but that didn't help at all. Finally he felt like giving up and collapsed to the floor, still covering his ears. Suddenly a bright light appeared behind him. He turned around and stood up again, shielding his eyes against the bright light. Through the light, he saw what appeared to a female walking toward him.

Kaiba shouted at her, asking who she was and to turn the light down. She giggled and he recognized her laugh. But before he could react, the light turned down dramatically. Once his eyes adjusted, he saw that his thoughts were right; the girl was Tiki. She was wearing the white dress she wore during Battle City and had her heart-shaped locket open around her neck. When he got a good look at the picture in it, he saw that it had the same picture that Mokuba had in his locket.

She reached out her hand while smiling one of her more breath-taking smiles. Kaiba reached out but then hesitated. Seeing the look in his eyes, she simply nodded. Despite the voices of Gozaburo telling him not to take her hand, Kaiba ignored them and took her hand. When they touched, all the darkness was replaced with white light and Gozaburo's voices were destroyed as well. He pulled her close to him and hugged her tightly. He looked down at her and felt at peace for the first time in a long time. He opened his eyes to find more tears falling.

As time went on, Kaiba started to remember the different faces of Tiki. He remembered how she blushed when they first met, how she smiled when he came to her game shop looking for her grandpa's rare card, how worried she looked when he first challenged her and Yugi, how relieved she was when she saw that he was alive after he arrived at Duelist Kingdom, how happy she looked when they went in the castle after he defeated Yugi, and how she reacted when he kissed her hand. Every memory had a profound effect on him, even if he denied it.

Yet there were three faces that stood out the most to him. The first was when the gang and Mokuba saw him again after she and Yugi defeated Pegasus. She started to run to him but Mokuba beat her to him. She looked happy for them but at the same time…sad because she didn't get to hug him.

The second was when she was holding her cheek after he slapped her. She looked like the world had ended for her. She looked so hurt and about to fall apart. He felt his heart squeeze as he continued to think of her crying after he slapped her. He covered his eyes with his arm and cursed himself for being so stupid as to do that.

But there was one ting that stood out the most to him; her smile. Every time she smiled, he felt slightly at peace. If her smile was accompanied by a little laugh, he felt his chest tighten. He now realized that the tightening was his heart squeezing. She would always smile whenever she saw him, even when the situation was grim or if she was depressed about something. Thanks to Tima, he now knew that she was covering up her hurt and that made her smile even more special to him.

As the sky turned blood-red from the sun starting to set, he remembered what she said before he walked away; "I love you Seto." He then whispered, "I love you too, Tiki."

More tears started to slide down his face. "Have I always been this blind? I've always try to deny it but…I DO need Tiki. She's the first person other than Mokuba to ever reach out to me with love and friendship. She's definitely the first girl to do that. Tiki…is my light. That dream…symbolizes that. I have to apologize to her for everything I did and ask her to be with me. But…how do I do that?"

He got up, wiped the new tears away, and paced around his room for a bit, deep in thought. He kept rehearsing what he would say to her but it all sounded dumb. But as soon as he came up with something, his phone suddenly rang, making him jump a little. Straightening himself up, he picked it up. "Yes?"

"Kaiba, you have to help us!" sounded the frantic voice of Yugi on the other end.

Kaiba was surprised that Yugi was calling but didn't let his voice show his surprise. "Yugi, what's going on?"

Yugi sounded like he was on the verge of tears. "Tiki's run away! She left us a note saying, 'Goodbye, I can't be on this earth any longer.' You have to help us! Everyone else is already looking for her! We have to find her…or…she'll—"

Kaiba felt his heart being torn from his chest, for he knew what Yugi was talking about. He now understood what was going on in him after all this time and knew that he couldn't be without Tiki. "All right, I'll look around here. Just…try not to panic."

With that, he hung up and was about to leave when he heard a familiar voice. "I know where she is."

He turned around and saw Tima sitting on a chair near him, more transparent than before but still visible enough for him to see her. "She's on top of KaibaCorp…getting ready to jump."

Kaiba froze. "Why aren't you there trying to get her to stop?"

The spirit shook her head. "No, we can only talk if she's wearing the Millennium Puzzle and she left it behind. Only you can stop her. You started this and so only you can fix this."

Kaiba quickly nodded, grabbed his Battle City Jacket, and raced out the door. Once she was alone, Tima smiled sadly and shook her head slightly. "I'm sure a liar. I can go and stop Tiki anytime I want but…this is something you should do. I hope you are able to stop her. But more importantly…I hope you've come to realize how much she means to you."

Will Kaiba get to Tiki in time or will she go through with her plan? Find out next time!


	8. A confession of the heart

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 8: A confession of the heart

Tiki stood at the edge of the KaibaCorp building. She didn't really like the fact that it was Kaiba's building she was about to jump off of but the only reason she chose the building was because it was the tallest in the whole city. A sob escaped her as she felt more tears slide down her face. "I can't cry now. This is the best thing…for everyone…especially Seto. He'll be able to…find real happiness…without me around."

With that, she spread her arms apart, took a deep breath, and was about to jump when she heard someone familiar behind her. "Tiki! Don't!"

Tiki turned around and saw Kaiba standing there, looking very worried and completely out of breath. She felt her heart tug; she couldn't deal with him right now after what happened. She screamed, "Go away, Seto! I don't need you anymore just like you don't need me! Believe me…this is best for all of us!"

"No, it isn't!" Kaiba said sharply but sadly. He then sighed, feeling his strength draining from him. "Especially not for me. I can't be without you. It took me a long time to admit this but…I need you in my life. I can't live without you. You're my sun…the air I breathe…my angel. Also…I am very sorry…for all the things I've done to you…all this time. Can you forgive me?"

Tiki didn't know how to respond. She's never seen him act this way before to anyone, not even to his brother. But she lowered her arms, jumped down, stood in front of him, and said quietly with a few more tears sliding down her face, "How do I know you're not just telling me this because someone made you?"

Kaiba sighed as he felt his eyes watering up. "Tiki, I'm doing this by choice. That…spirit friend of yours…came to visit me and talked a lot of sense into me. Thanks to her words…I realized what I have done to you…and I want to make up for it. Please…I just need to know…that you forgive me."

Tiki wasn't sure what to do or say. More sobs escaped her but she calmed down and said, "Can I have some…truth…in your words?"

Kaiba didn't know what to do at first but then thought of something that would show her his feelings. He pulled Tiki toward him and hugged her with all his might. At first, she was too stunned to do anything but blush. After a few minutes, he finally spoke up. "I know this isn't enough to convince you but…"

He couldn't continue because his feelings got the best of him. He started to cry himself and Tiki was astonished. She looked at him and wiped away his tears while letting her own fall. "Seto…you're serious about this, aren't you?" Seeing his nod, she smiled and hugged him back. "Don't worry about it…I forgave you a long time ago."

Feeling relieved, Kaiba looked deep in her eyes. "I have a couple of things I want to give you. But they're not things you can touch."

The corners of his mouth twitched and started to slowly go up. At first, Tiki thought it was going to be one of his signature smirks but then realized it wasn't. She then discovered what he was doing and gasped. For the first time in many years, Seto Kaiba smiled a pure smile. Tiki was speechless at first but then found her voice. "Seto…you…you're smiling."

He didn't answer, just caressed her cheek. She took his hand and held it. Then, getting close to each other, Kaiba and Tiki shared their first kiss. Ending the kiss, he said, "Tiki…will you…please…be my girlfriend?"

Tiki smiled. "I can't tell you how long I've wanted to hear those words from you. What do you think? Of course."

But Kaiba still felt very guilty for all the things he did to her, especially for what he did earlier. He turned away from her and said quietly, "Why? Why do you want to be with someone like…me? I feel like…I don't…deserve you."

Tiki smiled lovingly and turned him around. Such enough, he had a few more tears running down his face. She kept on smiling as she wiped them away. "You DO deserve me. If you love me and want to be with me, that gives you all the right in the world. If you're worried about my friends or brother or even your brother objecting it…forget about them! You love me and I love you. That's more than enough for me. Can't that be enough…for you?"

Kaiba was still unsure. Seeing this, Tiki reached up and gently kissed him. She then hugged him and sighed happily. He felt completely reassured and hugged her back. Sighing deeply, he rested his head on hers for a bit. 'When did I fall this much in love with Tiki? Have I always been this way? Have I been denying my feelings for her all this time…because of my anger and jealously toward her brother? That was stupid…she had nothing to do with it. But none of that matters anymore…she's mine now.'

Smiling again, he kissed her forehead. Tiki sighed happily and looked up at him. Pulling her forward, they kissed again against the setting sun. Nearby in the doorway, Tima smiled and disappeared from view before they could see her. But before she disappeared, she heard Tiki say in her mind, 'Don't think you're off the hook.'

---

Later that night, Tiki went after Tima, mad and grateful at the same time. 'Tima, you are such a liar! Why did you tell him that only he could stop me? You could have stepped in and done it yourself!'

Tima slightly shrugged while covering her tattoo. 'Well, if I'd done it, you and Kaiba wouldn't have gotten together. Besides, it set the perfect stage for your first…kiss.'

Tiki blushed. 'You were watching the whole time? Tima! That was private!' But still, she was glad her dark side stayed out of it. Back in the real world, she laid down on her bed sighing dreamingly, remembering what happened not twenty minutes ago.

What will happen between Tiki and Kaiba now? Find out next time!


	9. The “picnic”

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 9: The "picnic"

Kaiba closed his laptop and massaged his temples. It's been a tough month for him and everyone else. For the past few weeks, everyone suffered greatly. During that time, Dartz and his henchmen had been using Duel Monsters to attack the world and that soiled his company's reputation. Also, Yugi, Tiki, and Tima were the first ones of the gang to be taken by the Seal of Orichalcos. He didn't really care about Yugi and Tima but was devastated when he heard that Tiki was gone.

---

_Joey called Kaiba and had just spilled the beans that Yami lost and that Yugi, Tiki, and Tima were gone. Kaiba's face scrunched with anger, for he stopped listening when he heard that his rival lost to someone other than him. He yelled at Yami, calling him a disgrace to the game. He would have hung up if Joey hadn't yelled, "Hey, what's the matter with you? Didn't you hear me say Tiki was taken as well?"_

_Kaiba's hand froze just above the phone. His face showed pure stun. For a moment, he couldn't move. During that moment, he had another vision like the one he had before he got together with Tiki. He saw Tiki trying to get to him while something dark was pulling her away. She was screaming with tears going down her face. Then, all of a sudden, she was gone._

_Getting worried, Mokuba touched his arm, asking him if he was alright. Kaiba gasped, coming back to the real world. Putting the phone to his ear again, he hissed quietly but angrily, "What did you say?"_

_Joey started to get a little freaked since he's never seen Kaiba act like this before but he let it pass. "You heard me. Tiki's gone, along with her dark side and Yugi. As you can see, she's not here; that should have been your first clue."_

_Kaiba wasn't listening. The thought of Tiki being taken…that was too much. He pounded his desk extra hard and started yelling at Yami once again. "YOU LET THEM TAKE HER? How dare you, Yugi! You are a disgrace to your family! She has no right to be related to someone who would so lightly abandon her like that!"_

_With that, he slammed the phone down so hard it made his brother jump. When Mokuba asked if he was alright, Kaiba merely smirked with a old, familiar look in his eye, for he now had two reasons to go after the ones who were destroying his company._

---

Kaiba groaned as he remembered that day and how angry he was. He remembered how he became even angrier when he saw what happened to Tiki's dark side. Tima had been brainwashed and joined Dartz's side. Since she was using Tiki's body, he thought she was Tiki. (1)

That's when he vowed, then and there, to see to it personally that Dartz and his henchmen were stopped. But, alas, he had to have help from Yami and Joey. Nevertheless, in the end, all the souls that were taken returned and peace returned.

He put his laptop away and was about to go to head out to get his lunch when his secretary came in. "Mr. Kaiba, you have a message."

"Just leave it on my desk. I'll look at it later," Kaiba said without even looking at her.

"But sir, the person who dropped is off said it was very important that you'd see it immediately."

Kaiba sighed. "Fine. Who's it from?"

The secretary looked at the note. "It's from someone named…Tiki?"

Kaiba quickly reached out his hand at the mention of her name and the secretary gave him the note. Opening it, he read;

"Seto, meet on top of your company during your lunch break. I packed a special lunch for us. Tiki"

Kaiba slightly blushed and sighed amused. "Why am I not surprised that she did this? Well…may as well."

He finished putting everything away and started to head upstairs. As he got closer, he heard the faint tune of Tiki singing a pretty tune. He sort of let her voice be a guide to where she was. Even though he's been to the roof many times before, this time felt different for some reason. "It's probably because the girl I love is back," he said to himself as he made his way up.

Finally he made it to the roof. When he opened the door, he saw something he thought he would never see. Tiki was all laid out on a towel sunbathing next to a picnic basket. What made him blush deeply was the fact that she was wearing a small bikini. She was asleep and seemed to be singing in her sleep.

He snuck up to her and tapped her forehead with his finger. She woke up and smiled. She got up, put a large shirt on her, and smiled. "I'm glad you showed up."

Kaiba smiled as he sat down next to her. "How can I say no to something like this…especially when it was planned by my special girl?"

Tiki giggled and handed him a plate. But before she started to serve the food, Kaiba remembered something and took her hand. "Tiki…there's something I want to give you. I've actually wanted to give this to you for some time but…I think now is the right time…since what happened."

Tiki knew what he was talking about. Tima told her all about her being brainwashed by Dartz and serving him since Yami used the Seal of Orichalcos against Raphael. Instead of saying anything, she waited for what he was going to give her. Surprisingly, he took off her locket. Seeing her surprised face, he said, "You'll see."

With that, he turned around and starting working on something. Tiki wanted to see what he was doing but decided against it. Finally he turned around and gave the locket back. Raising her eyebrow, she opened it and gasped. On the left was a picture of a young Kaiba smiling. In fact, it looked exactly like the picture that Mokuba had. On the right was the picture that Tiki gave Kaiba at the end of Battle City. When she looked up, she asked, "Where did these come from?"

Kaiba looked proud. "They're copies of the originals. I took them to a photo shop and made copies that were the right size for your locket."

Tiki blushed but thanked him. For the next hour, they stayed on the roof, eating the lunch she prepared and talking about anything they could think of. Finally, fifteen minutes before Kaiba had to go back to work, Tiki brought a topic that surprised him. "You know Seto…you've changed quite a bit."

Kaiba didn't know what to say for a while. "How have I changed?" he finally asked.

Tiki shrugged while toying with the piece of strap that was hanging out of the shirt. "Oh, I don't know. You just seem…happier than before. You definitely smile a lot more."

Kaiba sighed. "Well, I'll tell you…it wasn't easy breaking that habit. But…" he smiled toward Tiki, "thanks to you…I AM much happier."

Tiki smiled back and they kissed. Soon their kiss turned into a make-out session. Kaiba would have continued it if he hadn't taken a slight glance at his watch and realized what time it was. He pulled back and said, "I'm sorry but I have to get back to work."

Tiki nodded, though he could tell by her eyes that she was upset that their moment had ended. Kaiba moved some hair out of her eyes and said, "How about this? I'll take you out to dinner tonight?"

Tiki's eyes shone as she hugged him tightly. Kaiba smiled, kissed her once more, and left. She stayed up there for a while longer soaking up a little more sun. Finally, she packed up and headed home to prepare for her date.

(1) Full story in chapters 26 and 27 of "Tima and Atem."

How will the date go? Find out next time!


	10. The walk

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 10: The walk

Kaiba was, at the moment, in heaven. He and Tiki were on a date that was going perfectly. They were at the park after having dinner and were walking along the path enjoying each other's company. Tiki obviously was the happiest of both of them. She was hugging his arm and had on the biggest smile. Kaiba was enjoying the night as well and kept thinking how lucky he was to have Tiki as his woman.

Soon they came to a particular bench when Tiki stopped and looked it over sadly. Kaiba noticed this and asked her what was wrong. Sighing, she replied, "I really shouldn't be sad at this spot but…I can't help."

With that, a tear fell but Kaiba caught it before it slid far down her face. Tiki smiled and looked at him with teary eyes. At this point Kaiba was very worried. "Tiki, what's wrong?" he asked her.

Tiki looked at the bench again. "This bench…is where…I confessed to you…my feelings…and then…" she whispered, looking down the walkway, "you walked away…and…slapped me."

Kaiba, thinking it over, realized that she was right. As a few more tears started to fall with Tiki remembering that event, he hugged her tightly. For a long while, they stood there holding each other, forgetting the world around them. Finally Tiki pulled back, smiling again. "Thank you Seto. I needed that."

Kaiba smiled and caressed her cheek. Tiki smiled more and took his hand. Drawing each other close, they picked up where they left off that afternoon on top of KaibaCorp. Tiki was blushing ten shades of red but was enjoying it nonetheless.

Kaiba was enjoying it as well but was also confused about a few things. When they stopped and continued to walk, he started thinking about something that had been on his mind for a while. 'What's going on? I mean…I love Tiki…with all my heart. But do I love her…too much? This intense yearning to…become one with her…I can't escape it. I know it's way too early for us…but what can I do to stop this yearning?'

Getting nowhere with himself, he brought up the subject with Tiki. "Tiki, how much do you love me?"

Tiki was a little confused to hear him ask this. But she gave him her honest answer. "I love you more than anything. I told you before, I would give up anything in the world to be with you and I still mean to this day. Why do you ask?"

Kaiba let go of her and turned his back from her, too embarrassed to face her. "Because…I love you…more than anything as well. But I'm starting to think that…maybe I love you too much."

Tiki laughed at that idea as she clasped her hands behind her head. "What are you talking about? You're not making any sense. It's OK to love someone too much. It's actually flattering if you think about it. You make it sound like it's a bad thing. Would you mind telling me what's really going on?"

Kaiba blushed deeply, turned around and looked deep in Tiki's eyes. "What I mean is…every time I see you…I want to…become one with you." Tiki blushed deeply as well but he ignored that. "What's discouraging is the fact that I know it's too soon for that…but I can't control myself sometimes. I don't understand me anymore."

Tiki giggled and took his hand. "That's OK. Believe it or not, I felt the same thing you're feeling. Even before we got together, I had that same yearning." Seeing Kaiba's very surprised face, she laughed, obviously very embarrassed. "It's true."

"So…what did you do whenever you felt like that?" Kaiba asked her with a great deal of interest.

Tiki blushed even deeper and looked at him with a look of innocence in her eyes. "Imagine it."

Kaiba thought of that and he also blushed deeper. They ended up laughing about it and dropping the subject for the rest of evening. Finally, a little after eleven, Kaiba dropped Tiki off in front of the Game Shop. Before she went in, she pulled him into one more hug. Looking up into his eyes, she said, "It's alright to want to have that type of yearning. It's only natural in a relationship. Besides, the right time will come. I can feel it. So stop worrying about it."

Kaiba smiled at that thought. "Thank you Tiki." Thinking for a second, he said, "You know…there are times when I still find it hard to believe that it took me all those years to realize my feelings for you."

Tiki grinned and said in a sly voice, "I'm just glad you DID and at the right time, too."

Kaiba merely nodded, not wanting to remember that day. Shaking the picture from his mind, he pulled her into one more passionate kiss and they parted for the night.

Once inside, Tiki leaned against the door and sighed dreamingly. Sneaking into her room, she tried to slip into bed without being seen but was unsuccessful. Yugi was still awake and waiting for her. "Tiki, where have you been? Do you have any idea what time it is?"

Tiki smiled, quickly pulled the curtain back to hide her red face, and went to bed. For the first few minutes, she was holding her locket and smiling a dreamy smile. Yugi looked at her then at Yami who appeared next to him and wondered out loud, "What the heck happened to her?"

Tima appeared sitting next to Yami. Yami made her put her hand over her tattoo and go ask Tiki in her dreams what happened. When she came back, she was blushing deeply from what she just learned. Seeing the boys' curious look, she filled them in on what Tiki told her. When she was done, they were blushing deeply with her.

Tiki heard the silence and pulled the curtain back to look at them. Yugi and Yami were still blushing as they looked at her and Tima started to laugh. Tiki shook her head. "You told them, didn't you, Tima?"

Tima nodded, still laughing. Yugi looked at Tiki and said uneasily, "Well…who'd have thought that you had that type of thoughts about Kaiba."

Tiki grinned slyly. "I have other thoughts…more detailed too. Want to hear them?" Yugi, greatly embarrassed, quickly pulled the curtain back as his answer. Tiki laughed, rolled over, and started to dream sweet dreams of her and Kaiba.

You'll have to wait a few more chapters before Kaiba and Tiki's dreams come true!


	11. A surprise visit and life story

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 11: A surprise visit and life story

Kaiba opened his eyes and stretched. It was the beginning of a new day and a new life. A month ago was graduation and the whole gang was starting a new life. Yugi and Tiki inherited the Game Shop after their grandfather died but passed it on to their dark sides. Atem and Tima recovered their memories and started a new life together in their own bodies. Tea became a famous singer and dancer, singing about friendship and love. Joey and Tristan became famous fighters. Mai became a world-famous duelist. Serenity became an actress. Duke Devlin kept making his Dungeon Dice Monsters game better and better as the game reached all over the world. Ryou became a teacher in England, teaching Japanese at a university. Rose became a model for a top English clothes company.

Also, just about all the couples got either engaged or married. Joey and Mai, Tristan and Serenity, and Atem and Tima were already married. Yugi and Tea were currently engaged and waiting for their wedding date. Duke Devlin was getting ready to pop the question to his girlfriend Miho. Mokuba and Rebecca were going to celebrate their one-year anniversary. As for Kaiba, his time as President of KaibaCorp waned down to weekdays so that he could spend more time with Mokuba and Tiki.

'Tiki,' he thought to himself. He opened his window and breathed a heavy sigh. It's been almost two years since Battle City and he even now still had trouble believing that Tiki could love him as much as she did, despite all things he's done. What was even harder to believe that she never felt hatred toward him, just a great deal of concern.

He also owed Tiki a lot of gratitude everything she has done for him. Over the course of their relationship, she re-taught Kaiba how to laugh, smile, and helped him make friends with the whole gang. Thanks to Tima's talk that year and Tiki's love and patience, he recovered his lost soul that was almost completely destroyed by Gozaburo. However they had a compromise that would help both. He never revealed that side of him when he was at work because he didn't want to appear weak to everyone who worked for him. Tiki was fine with that arrangement, as long as he would change back when he left.

Kaiba smiled as he thought of Tiki's smiling face and headed downstairs. There, he met the now 13-year-old Mokuba getting breakfast. "Morning, Big Brother!" Mokuba said when Kaiba came in.

"Morning, Kid. Hey, did you get the paper?" he asked when he didn't see it in the usual place.

Mokuba looked at his brother with a blank and innocent look on his face. Kaiba rolled his eyes and said, "Fine, I'll get it."

When he opened the door, he picked up the paper, thinking it would be a normal day for him and his brother. But when he looked up, he realized that it wouldn't. A few steps away from him, ragged and dirty, was Tiki collapsed in a heap with a backpack nearby.

Kaiba quickly went to her and picked her and her backpack up, relieved that she was still breathing. He went inside and called for one of his maids. When she came, he handed Tiki over to her and ordered, "Get some clean clothes on her and get her in my bed."

The maid nodded and walked off with Tiki in her arms. When she was out of sight, he headed back to the kitchen for breakfast. But he barely touched it or even heard his brother talk to him. He kept thinking about Tiki and why she was out there looking the way she did.

Finally, tired of being ignored, Mokuba got in front of his brother and asked what was wrong. Kaiba said nothing and left the room. Mokuba was stunned. "What's with him? Oh well, I've got a date with Rebecca today and I don't want to be late." After cleaning up, he wrote Kaiba a note about his whereabouts and left.

---

Kaiba sat down next to his bed, watching Tiki sleep. He didn't leave the room for at least an hour until the phone rang. He answered it. "Yes?"

"Mr. Kaiba, where are you? You haven't shown up today. Your presence is required," sounded Roland's voice on the other end.

Kaiba thought about what to do for a bit. Reaching a decision, he said, "Not today. Something's come up. I'm taking the day off." Before Roland could answer, he hung up and sat back down.

He remained in his room all morning. Finally, after sitting for quite some time, he fell asleep. Then, a little while after he was asleep, Tiki woke up. At first, she was very confused. 'Where am I? Oh yeah…I went to Seto's house last night and I guess someone found me.'

Looking down at herself, Tiki saw that she wasn't in the dress she wore last night. Instead, she was wearing her favorite purple nightgown. She slightly blushed and wondered to herself, 'Who the heck dressed me?'

Just then, he saw Kaiba sleeping on his chair next to her. 'Seto…was he by my side all this time? I wonder if HE dressed me.'

Smiling and blushing at such a thought, she reached out and touched his cheek. Waking up, Kaiba grabbed her hand startled. Realizing it was Tiki's, he smiled at her. "How you feeling?" he asked.

"I'm fine," she said to him.

"Why were you out there this morning? Where's your brother? Shouldn't you be at the game shop?" Kaiba asked, trying to get a grip on the situation.

Tiki sighed and looked away, which got him a little concerned. She held her legs to her chest and said, "I just had to get away from my life. It's been one bad event after another. Yeah, I've had a lot of good times but lately…all I can remember are the bad times for some reason. I just…had to get away."

Kaiba looked at her with great concern. He's never heard her talk like this before. "What are you talking about? All the time I've known you, you've seemed like the happiest girl in the world. What happened to make you feel this way?"

Tiki shook her head. "It's not important. Besides, you're probably not all that interested."

Kaiba moved next to her and put his arm around her tenderly. "That's not true. If it's something that's bothering you…then I definitely want to know about it."

Tiki smiled slightly, leaned against his shoulder and began her tale. "Well…the memory that started it all was when I was a little girl at the orphanage. Rose was my big sister and she promised me that we would be adopted together. But…"

"She broke the promise?" Kaiba asked, already knowing the answer.

Tiki nodded. "Not one year after she said that, Ryou and his family came looking for a girl to add to their family. At first, Rose didn't want anything to do with them since they only wanted one. But as soon as she saw Ryou…she completely forgot her promise. She went and told them that she was an only child. What she didn't realize until later was that I happened to be nearby when she said that.

"For the next two years, I isolated myself from everyone. I didn't want to be with anyone and I actually liked it that way. I was actually a lot like you during your dark years. But then, I met Yugi. He and his grandfather came to pick out a sister for him. Among all of them…there was something about me that he really liked. That day…I became his sister.

"The years went by without a care in the world. One of the happiest moments in my life was when I first met you. Even though you were still very cold and secluded back then, there was something about you that attracted me. I've always wanted to talk you, even get you to say hi to me. That time in the computer lab is when I achieved the dream of at least giving you a hint of my feelings for you. That was when…I discovered what love was like.

"But that thing that was in you…made me realize that I had my work cut out for me. That day, when my brother and I first dueled you, I knew that the person in front of me wasn't the real you. I wanted so badly to help you but for the first time in my life…I felt completely helpless.

"Despite the fact that you didn't admit to having any feelings for me, I could tell just by how you acted. Like when you dueled my brother in order to get the star chips to get into Pegasus' castle. You remember? You were actually really cute, telling Yugi that I wouldn't duel with him and that I would remain with you. Even when you stood on the edge of the ledge and when you took me with you to the castle, you surprised me when you took me with you both times. I've often wondered this and I'll ask you now; why did you do that?"

Kaiba smiled as he remembered that. Before he answered, he took her hand and kissed it. "To be honest…part of the reason why I wanted to defeat your brother was because I believed you were being forced to stand by him. I believed that, with you free from the bondage, I would be able to be around you without your brother around. That was actually the first time I started to think differently about you. But enough about that."

Tiki nodded and continued. "Another time I felt helpless was when Pegasus captured your soul after you lost that duel. You were so close…and yet so far away. At that moment, I completely forgot that Yugi and I were there to rescue Grandpa. All that mattered to me…was getting YOU back.

"One event that rings in my mind from time to time…was when I told you my feelings and you rejected and slapped me. I can actually still feel the sting on my face whenever I remember it. After that, I decided to kill myself…for your sake and your sake alone. If Tima hadn't talked to you and if you hadn't reached me in time…I wouldn't be here today.

"But this last event tops them all. It actually happened yesterday. When I woke up that morning, everyone was gone. Looking around, I found this note in the kitchen."

Tiki got up and reached into one of the outside pockets of her backpack. Turning around, Kaiba saw that she was holding what appeared to be the note. She handed it to him so that he could find out for himself what was going on. When he read it, he realized why she ran away.

'Dear Tiki…Atem, Tima, and I are going to Egypt to do some more digging around about our past. I need you to stay here and continue running the Game Shop. Sorry we couldn't take you but we could only afford three tickets. Besides, one of us needs to stay behind anyway. See you in September. Yugi.'

When he finished, Kaiba almost lost it. He crumbled the note up and tossed it in the trash can. Looking back at Tiki, he saw that her eyes were starting to water with anger. He got up and held for what seemed like an eternity. Finally Tiki pulled away and said while smiling, "Thanks, Seto. You always seem to know how to cheer me up."

Kaiba was still concerned. "What are you going to do now?"

Tiki shrugged, still looking a little depressed. "I guess…I'll continue to run the Game Shop until they come back. We can't survive without the money we earn through the shop."

Kaiba was surprised by her answer. "But that's the one place you can't go. Come on, you even tried to run away from there."

Tiki shrugged again. "Yeah well…"

Kaiba shook his head. "No. I won't allow you to go back there. You are going to stay with me this summer."

Tiki's eyes grew wide. "But…who's going to watch the shop?"

Kaiba smiled a sly smile and pulled her closer. "That, my dear, one of my workers will do. They'll work there for the summer and make the money your family needs."

Tiki smiled a surprised smile. "I can really stay with you?"

Kaiba gave her a sarcastic look. "Come on, do I look like the joking type? Of course you can stay. Where else would you go?"

Tiki laughed and hugged Kaiba with all her strength. Dipping her, he kissed her. Inside her heart, all her sadness melted away and was replaced with nothing but love and happiness.

How will the summer go for them? Find out next time!


	12. Dreams do come true

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 12: Dreams do come true

The summer went by too fast for Tiki and Kaiba. They spent every weekend together. They went to the movies, the beach, and the park. Thought sometimes, they just stayed home and enjoyed each other's company. But they never went past that step. That is…until the last Sunday of summer.

That day, Tiki and Kaiba were enjoying a walk by the beach when Kaiba thought of something. He thought that the time was perfect for them to take a major step in their lives. He also knew that only he could start them in taking that step. Pulling her close, he asked her, "Tiki, would you like to go out on a formal date tonight?"

Tiki's eyes grew wide at that idea since they had never been on formal dates before. Looking up at her love, she smiled and nodded. "Yes…I would love that."

As soon as they got home, Tiki started getting ready. She bathed for at least an hour while singing a few of her favorite songs, picked out the perfect dress, and found the perfect hairstyle to go with her outfit.

Finally the hour came. Kaiba was waiting at the bottom of the stairs wearing a tux, waiting for Tiki to come down. He actually appeared nervous as he was waiting. He was constantly checking his pocket, making sure a particular box was still there. Finally he heard Tiki say as she was coming down the stairs, "I'm ready."

Kaiba turned around and his breath was taken away at the sight of her. She was wearing a backless red dress. Her hair was pinned up in an elegant bun with a few strands of hair on either sides of her face. Her face was so elegantly made up that she looked older than she actually was. Kaiba didn't know what to say for a while but finally found his voice. "You…you look amazing!"

Tiki blushed as she continued to walk down the stairs. When she was in front of him, she smiled and said, "Shall we go?"

Kaiba smiled and took her by the arm out the door. Outside, he let her get in the limo first and joined her on the other side.

---

The whole way over to the restaurant, Tiki kept discreetly moving closer toward Kaiba. Once she got close enough, she got hold of his hand. He took his hand back and instead wrapped it around her waist. They stay in that position the whole way to the restaurant.

Once they arrived and walked in, Tiki felt like she had died and gone to heaven. The restaurant was one of those kinds with a live slow-music band and a little space in front of it in case people wanted dance, which a few couples were doing at the moment. She was still in a bit of a daze when Kaiba started to take her to their table.

On the way, a group of men came and surrounded them. Apparently, there were all partners of Kaiba and wanted to have a dinner-meeting with him, not including Tiki. Before Tiki could say or do anything, Kaiba raised his hand silencing the men. "Sorry gentlemen, but tonight is not the night for that. This meeting will be held first-thing in the morning when I get to the office. But right now, I am in middle of a VERY important date with my girlfriend and we would like to get to our table, if you don't mind."

The group glared at Tiki and she smiled a nervous smile at them. Grumbling, they left them alone. When they got to their table, Tiki said, "You know, you didn't have to do that. If it's something really important, you should go be with them."

Kaiba shook his head and said, "Nothing else is more important to me right now except what I have in front of me."

Tiki smiled and eyed the men, who were giving her the evil eye. Kaiba saw the look and gave them a threatening look, which made them quickly turn away from them. Tiki giggled at their reaction as they made their way to their table but then said, "I never thought that we would run into your colleagues in a place like this."

Kaiba raised his eyebrow as he opened the menu. "Why's that? I've always wanted these dinner meetings in a type of place like this…because they've always wanted it that way. Said that the music helped them stay focused. I always found the music annoying but it's the only way to have one of these meetings."

Tiki chuckled as she opened her menu as well. "Well…if it gets work done, you do what you have to do."

Kaiba paused and looked at her for a second. Tiki saw his look and returned the gaze. He then smirked. "That's true…but I'm a different business man now than I was before I started dating you."

Tiki raised her eyebrow as she put her menu down. "How's that?"

Kaiba put his menu down as well and took her hand. "Because of you…I'm taking risks that I never thought I could do. Before you, I was only accepting plans that were to my favor. Now…I have more projects than ever before."

Tiki blushed but smiled. For the whole evening, Kaiba and Tiki were having the time of their lives. They didn't know that his associates were watching them very closely. They were extremely surprised because they had never seen their boss act the way he was. Still, they knew better than to bother him. Toward the end of their date, Tiki brought up a subject she was thinking about for a while. "What made you decide to pick this restaurant? After all, you said that the music was annoying to you. So what made you choose it?"

Kaiba fidgeted a little before he answered. "Well…I thought this was the perfect one for us."

Tiki was a little confused because she had never seen him this nervous before. But she smiled and looked longingly at the dance floor. "You know what would be really neat? To request a song. I wonder if you can do that."

Kaiba took note of what she just said, got up, and went to where the band was. Tiki watched him wondering what he was doing. When he got back, he took her by the hand and led her to the dance floor. When the band leader saw them, he said to everyone else, "For this next song, we have a special request from this young man here…to his special lady."

Tiki's eyes shone when she heard what he said. 'He took my words to heart!' Out loud, she said, "Thank you, Seto."

Kaiba smiled, wrapped his arms around her waist, and they started a slow dance to a beautiful piece of music. Throughout the song, they held each other tightly and enjoyed each other's touch. Tiki kissed Kaiba's hand and he kissed her neck.

In the middle of the song, Kaiba stopped the dance momentarily. Seeing Tiki's confused look, he smiled. "Tiki…you know…you're a very special woman. I have to be frank…I can't imagine my life without you. Before you came along, I didn't believe I could ever go back to the way I was. But you changed me…in ways that I can't even begin to describe. Now…it's my turn to change you." After saying this and reaching into his pocket, he got down on one knee, and opened a little jewel box. "Tiki…will you marry me?"

Tiki's eyes filled with tears as she saw the ring. It was silver with three brilliant oval-cut diamonds in the center. Blinking the tears away, she said, "Oh…yes! Yes!"

Kaiba smiled, slipped the ring on her finger, and continued to dance with her as the music swelled. This time, the dance was a little more romantic than before. Kaiba kept rubbing her back slightly, making her shudder and arch her back with delight.

When the song ended, Kaiba dipped her and the two lovers kissed a passionate kiss while everyone applauded. Off to the side, Kaiba's associates were shocked by what he was doing. Smiling down at his girl, Kaiba said, "Ready to go…or do you want to stay?"

Tiki simply smiled, motioned for the door and they left. All the way home, Kaiba held her close and she enjoyed his touch even more. When they got home, they kissed once again and said good night to each other.

---

An hour later, Kaiba couldn't sleep. He felt that something was missing. In order to clear his head, he got out of bed and stood next to the window, watching the rain fall. After watching for a while, he heard a knock at his door. He went to it saying, "Who is it?"

From the other side sounded a familiar but cheerless voice. "It's me."

Surprised, Kaiba opened the door. Tiki stood there in her robe. She walked in and stopped in the middle of the room with her back facing him. Kaiba was about to ask what was wrong when she said, "You and I are engaged now, right? So…why are we sleeping in separate rooms?"

Kaiba knew where she was going. "Tiki, we talked this over when you first moved in. I wasn't sure of those feelings I have for you. I—"

"I know that," Tiki said, cutting him off. "But I believe that the time has come for our dreams to come true." Turning around, she said, "I'm ready to give myself to you. I've thought it over many times and I can't wait any longer. Besides, I believe that tonight is perfect. We're both out of high school and aren't going to go to college. Even if I get…you know…it's not like we would be in any sort of trouble. We're going to get married anyway and money will never be a problem for us like others. So…please…can we…become one?"

With that, she removed the robe revealing a long white negligee. She put that on to try to turn him on. Kaiba was confused for a little while. 'What should I do? Should I fulfill my dreams…or should I continue to wait? With the way she said it, tonight is the perfect time. But should I?'

Finally reaching an answer, he stepped in front of Tiki. He grabbed her softly and kissed her passionately. Stopping the kiss, he said, "I'm ready as well."

Find out what happens next time!


	13. The day after passion

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 13: The day after passion

The next morning, Kaiba woke up to find Tiki sleeping peacefully in his arms. He smiled as he remembered the world they discovered that night. During that time, she unknowingly showed her lover a number of different emotions he had never experienced before; passion, adoration, and a number of others.

As he continued to watch her sleep, he thought of something he had never thought of before. 'Everyone needs someone. Can't believe I used to think that people were strong alone. I was wrong; I've become much stronger since I started dating Tiki. After last night, I think…I love her…even more than before.'

Coming to terms with that thought, he leaned over and kissed Tiki on the forehead, waking her up. She smiled lovingly at her lover and whispered, "Good morning."

Kaiba smiled back and said good morning back. Sitting up, he appeared to be deep in thought. Tiki joined him with her chest covered with the blanket and was about to ask him what was wrong when he asked, "Do you really think we did the right thing?"

Tiki giggled and hugged his arm. "You're still worried about that? Let me just say this; if the right thing is making both of us happy beyond our wildest dreams…then yes."

Kaiba smiled and hugged her back. "I don't want to go to work today. I want to spend more time with you."

Tiki smiled at that thought but she knew the truth. "I would love that too. But you have that meeting today…with those guys we saw at the restaurant last night. You set it up yourself. Remember?"

Kaiba groaned but nodded and got up to get dressed. While he was putting on his Battle City outfit, Tiki was putting her negligee and robe back on. When he eyed her curiously, she grinned, shrugged, and said, "I'm not going anywhere today. So why should I dress like I am?"

Chuckling, Kaiba took her hand and they went downstairs to get breakfast. Mokuba was already there eating cereal. When they entered, he looked up and asked, "Hey Seto, are you feeling OK?"

The two lovers raised their eyebrow at the kid's question. Kaiba answered calmly, "Yes…I've never been better. Why do you ask?"

Mokuba simply answered, "Because when I went by your room to get a drink last night, I heard a lot of…moaning coming from inside. I was going to check on you but decided against it."

Kaiba and Tiki immediately knew what he was talking and blushed deeply. Tiki tried hard not to laugh as she was pouring some milk to drink while Kaiba looked away and hid his face with his hand. Mokuba was going to ask why they were acting like that when it hit him. "Ooooooooooooooooooooh, you guys did IT last night…didn't you?"

Kaiba got even redder and left for work without a word. When he was gone, Mokuba blushed deeply at the thought of his brother doing "it" while Tiki burst out laughing. Seeing Mokuba looking at her, she settled down. "Yes, Mokuba. We did do…what you think we did…last night. And I'm rather glad you decided to leave us alone. We don't think we would have wanted to be walked in on."

Mokuba blushed even deeper than his brother and continued to eat his breakfast in silence. Tiki giggled at his reaction and left to go play in her room since she wasn't really hungry. She stayed in there almost the whole day, waiting for Kaiba to return. While she was waiting, she worked on a story she was currently writing and rehearsed for the upcoming play she was going to star in.

When Kaiba finally arrived home around ten that night, he immediately started to pack a large suitcase full with clothes. Tiki appeared behind him and tapped his back. Turning around, he hugged her but still seemed a little distant. Tiki sensed something was wrong and asked him what was going on. Kaiba told her, "Tomorrow I'm leaving for America to oversee the production of a new KaibaLand."

"Well, that's good," Tiki said. "What's really bothering you?"

Kaiba looked away and coolly said, "I'll be gone for three weeks."

Tiki understood why he appeared pretty upset. They wouldn't see each other during that time. Trying to find the light in the situation, she said, "What time do you leave?"

Kaiba sighed. "Five-thirty in the morning."

Tiki was now feeling the same thing he was feeling. But she thought of something that would cheer him up a bit. "Well, at least we have tonight."

Kaiba smiled a little and they kissed to make up for those three weeks. When he was finished packing, Tiki snuck a special envelope in his carry-on bag to look at on the plane.

What's in the envelope? Find out next time!


	14. A special surprise

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 14: A special surprise

Kaiba walked around his private plane grumbling. "Why do these stupid projects always have to start early in the morning? That part of business I never did get."

Opening his bag to find something to keep him busy, he was surprised to find an envelope with his name on it. He eyed it suspiciously for a minute. "I didn't put this in my bag. Wonder what's in it?"

Curiosity getting the better of him, he ripped it open. First thing he found was a letter that was in Tiki's hand-writing. It read;

'Seto, I'm sorry that we'll not see each other in person for the next three weeks. But at least you'll still get to see my face. Look in the envelope and you'll see what I mean.'

Kaiba chuckled at her note and looked inside the envelope. To his surprise, he pulled out a couple of photos. As he looked over the pictures, he remembered the memories attached to them. The first one was a really funny one. Kaiba was leaning to kiss Tiki, completely unaware of the other surroundings. She, however, was looking the direction of where the camera was with her eyes wide in surprise and her face as red as a tomato.

---

_It happened about a month and a half ago. Kaiba and Tiki thought that Mokuba was on a date with Rebecca and that they had the house all to themselves. They were snuggling in front of the fireplace, just enjoying being with each other. Kaiba started to lean in to kiss Tiki when she saw something in front of them. But before she could do anything, there was a flash of a camera and Mokuba and Rebecca were standing there grinning. Mokuba was the guilty one, for he was holding the camera. Both blushing in embarrassment, Kaiba and Tiki chased the two trouble-makers around the house for a while. Rebecca was able to leave but Mokuba wasn't so lucky. They caught him but they noticed that he didn't have the camera with him anymore. Apparently, Rebecca took the camera with her when she left._

---

Kaiba slightly laughed and covered his eyes with his hand as he remembered that day. "That was QUITE an experience. Definitely one I'll never forget. I'll have to think of some way to get back at Mokuba for that."

He looked at the next and smiled. Tiki and another girl were posing as if they were shooting him with their fake machine guns. Tiki was wearing a skimpy dress and a short, curly blond wig. The girl was wearing a similar outfit but had on a short, straight black wig.

---

_Three weeks after Tiki moved in with Kaiba, she performed in the play "__Chicago" where she was the main character Roxie Hart. She actually never told him that she was acting. Instead, she just got him and Mokuba front row seats as a surprise and told them to be at the theater at the right time. When they arrived, they wondered where she was. Little did they know that she was going to meet them when she arrived on stage. Kaiba called her cell and she told them to go on in._

_When she came out on stage, their jaws dropped. She dazzled them and the entire audience with her acting talent and singing voice. Kaiba met up with her after the performance and took her picture with her and her friend who played Velma Kelly in their costumes._

---

Kaiba smiled. "Tiki should think about performing in that theater as a career. She's a natural there." He then remembered what happened afterwards.

---

_Tiki and her friend who played Velma Kelly were being interviewed after the performance. With their wigs, a few people started to laugh. They each had the hair style for the opposite role. Tiki and her friend were enjoying all the attention until one of the interviewers asked Tiki, "Your acting is so real on the stage. Do you base your acting on real life?"_

_Tiki was utterly insulted. "Excuse me? I just give it my all in acting so that everyone can feel my performance."_

_Another interviewer jumped in with a question and later regretted it. "We noticed that you were particularly into it when Roxie was doing any anything sexual. We recently learned that you're living with president of Kaiba-Crop, Seto Kaiba. Do you act like that in real-life?"_

_Tiki exploded. "What business is that of yours? That is between Seto and I! Besides…I would never be unfaithful to him. I am not like that. I put more into it because I pretended that the person Roxie was acting that way to was Seto. How dare you ask such a question!" With that, she stormed off, but not before punching the reporter in the eye._

---

Kaiba smirked. "It was kind of funny to see her act like that. But it was comforting to hear her say that she'll always be faithful to me."

The next picture was also Tiki in costume. Only this time she was in a dirty, ugly dress and her face was dirty was well.

---

_A month ago, she got Kaiba and Mokuba front row seats for her next play, this time being "Les Misérables." She didn't tell them what part she got. They found out who she was when she came out; she played the part of Eponine. She, again, gave it her all and it seemed so real. When she and her guy friend who was Marius sang "A Little Fall of Rain," there was hardly a dry eye in the theater. Even Mokuba cried and Kaiba's eyes watered with that performance._

---

Kaiba smiled. "I don't care what she says; that was her best performance over all."

Looking at the next picture, he felt his heart squeeze. It was a picture of him hugging her from behind in front of a Ferris wheel. It was taken on their first date to the amusement park.

---

_Kaiba was working a few days after he and Tiki got together when she burst in. "Put that stuff away! We're going to the amusement park today!"_

_Kaiba looked at her with his eyebrow raised. "One things first; how did you get up here?"_

_Tiki chuckled as she hopped up on the corner of his desk. "Oh, that was easy. Heck, it was so easy it's funny. Security did try to stop me from disturbing you. All I had to do was tell them who I was to you and they let me through."_

_Kaiba covered his eyes with his hand. "I really need better security," he murmured._

_Tiki shrugged. "True, you do. But anyway, forget about it! Let's have fun today! You can't be working all the time. Besides, you don't have any broad meetings or anything like that today, do you?"_

_All Kaiba had to do was shake his head and Tiki grabbed his hand and dragged him out the door. They spent the day at the amusement park and had someone take their picture at the end of the day._

---

Kaiba chuckled as he thought of that day. "That was fun. Tiki and I should do that again sometime."

He gasped when he saw the next photo. This one didn't have any history behind it that he knew of. It was a close-up of Tiki's face. She was made up with her best make-up and looked absolutely breath-taking. She was smiling one of her more beautiful smiles.

Looking on the back, Kaiba saw that there were some writing on it. It read, "Love you, Tiki."

Kaiba smiled. Then, looking at the last picture, he drifted off to sleep for the rest of the trip. 'Can life get any better than this?' he thought.

Can it? Find out next time!


	15. Returning to a lifechanging situation

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 15: Returning to a life-changing situation

The three weeks were almost over and Tiki was getting excited to see Kaiba again. But she couldn't show her excitement because she became extremely sick during the last week. She figured it was the flu but knew it didn't normally hurt as much as it did. She threw up so many times that she lost almost ten pounds. Plus the sickness made her so weak that all she could do was go from the bathroom to the bed.

The day Kaiba was due back, Tiki remembered that Tima once felt this way and what she turned out to be. So, gathering herself up, she headed downstairs slowly where she knew Mokuba was. When she finally got down, she asked him, "You're going to the store, right?" Seeing him nod, she added, "Can you get something for me?"

"Sure, what?" Mokuba asked. Tiki motioned for him to come over and whispered in his ear. His eyes widened and said, "You need THAT? You really think…that…you're—"

Tiki shrugged. "I honestly don't know. It's just a feeling."

Mokuba looked her over for a bit and then headed out. A half hour later, he came back. Not seeing Tiki anywhere, he heard a familiar sound coming from the upstairs bathroom. Heading upstairs, he waited outside the door until Tiki stuck her head out, completely pale. Grimacing, he handed the package she wanted. Smiling weakly at him, she went back inside and stayed there for about five minutes.

When Tiki finally came out, she looked like she was on the verge of tears. She could only look at Mokuba for a minute before she burst into tears and ran back to her and Kaiba's room. Mokuba was about to go after her when he heard the door open.

Kaiba was just getting inside when Mokuba came racing toward him. "Welcome home, Seto!" he said while hugging his big brother.

"Thanks, Mokuba," Kaiba said. "Hey…where's Tiki?"

Mokuba wasn't sure what to say at first but thought of something. "She's in your room. She's been pretty sick so…"

Kaiba got a little worried when he heard the words "Tiki" and "sick." So, setting his stuff down, he headed toward their room. Getting near the door, he heard what he believed to be crying. He quietly walked in and saw Tiki crumbled on the bed crying.

He went over and tapped her on the shoulder. She gasped at the touch but looked up at him through teary eyes. Now Kaiba was very worried. Sitting next to her, he put his arm around her and said, "Tiki, what's wrong?"

Tiki looked away and said, "Something's happened…that will affect both of us."

Holding her close, Kaiba laid him and her back on the bed. "It's alright," he said confidently. "There's no problem I can't handle or fix."

Tiki had to giggle at that statement as she wiped her eyes. "Well, there's a first time for everything…for two reasons. First, this is NOT problem, just something that will change our lives. Second, this is something no one can fix. As for the handling part, I hope you CAN handle it."

Kaiba raised his eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

Tiki sighed and sat up. Kaiba joined her as he waited for her to answer. Finally she blushed and said, "Seto…I'm…pregnant."

Kaiba was dumbstruck by what she just said. He had to stay still for a bit while what Tiki just said was registering in his mind. Finally he said, "I hope you're right; I hope I CAN handle this."

Tiki giggled for a bit but then looked very thoughtful. "Seto…" she finally said, "…do you think we'll make good parents?"

Kaiba smiled and put his arm around her again. "I think so. We already know that you're very caring and, thanks to you, I am too. Besides, we're not like some who have to worry about money or school. One question, though; why were you crying?"

Tiki blushed. "I…just didn't expect my being pregnant so soon. It's a big change and I just didn't expect it so soon. It's kind of scary for an eighteen year old getting pregnant. That's all."

Kaiba playfully swatted the back of her head. "Don't do that next time! You had me worried."

Tiki smiled and was about to add something when she remembered something. "Oh no!" she groaned, covering her face with her hands. Before Kaiba could ask her what was wrong, she murmured, "I still have to tell my family about this."

Kaiba thought about this and groaned too. "Do you really have to?"

Tiki nodded. "Unfortunately, yes. I didn't leave them any note about where I was when I ran away. I have to at least let them know I'm OK. Besides, I want them to be a part of our child's life."

Kaiba sighed and nodded. Helping her up, they set out to tell Atem, Yugi, and Tima the news.

How will they handle hearing Tiki is pregnant? Find out next time!


	16. Reunion and surprise

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 16: Reunion and surprise

Atem and Tima shook their heads at the sight they were seeing. They had never seen Yugi this worked up or this worried before. He was currently pacing around the room, worried sick about his sister. Rolling her eyes, Tima said, "Yugi, enough. You're starting to make me dizzy."

Yugi glared at her and snapped, "Can you blame me for acting like this? My sister is missing and it's all because I was the one who decided to leave her behind when we left for Egypt!"

Tima growled and was about to respond when Atem stopped her. "I advise you not to answer. He's very upset right now and I don't want that attitude of yours making it worse."

Tima sweatdropped at his response but agreed and kept her mouth shut. Just then, the door opened and in walked Kaiba. As before, he had on his cold face. Yugi wasn't really pleased to see him at that moment. "Kaiba, what do you want?" he asked, his voice a bit nasty.

Kaiba answered coldly. "What's with your attitude? If that's the way you're—" He stopped suddenly and rubbed his back in pain. Behind him and out of sight of the others, Tiki was standing there pinching his back with her nails as a way to tell him to cool his attitude. Shaking his head annoyed, Kaiba turned his attention back to Yugi. "For your information, I have something of yours I think you might want."

Yugi didn't have the time or patience for riddles. "What the heck are you talking about, Kaiba? In case you can't see, we're in the middle of an emer—" He stopped because Kaiba stepped out of the way and revealed Tiki behind him.

For a minute, Yugi stared at Tiki, not knowing what to do. Finally he went up and hugged her. "Tiki, thank God you're all right!" he exclaimed.

Tiki merely nodded as she let him hug her. But she didn't return the hug. Tima sensed something was wrong and asked Tiki if she was alright. Tiki merely said, "Come here so I can tell YOU, Tima."

Tima went over to her and Tiki whispered the news in her ear. Tima's eyes grew wide and she nodded. "Oh…I see." Smiling, she took Tiki in her arms and Tiki hugged her back. "Don't worry; I'm here if you ever need help or advice. Plus, all of us will help you."

Looking at Kaiba, she nodded as if to tell him that she knew what was going on. Looking at Tiki she asked, "You ready to tell them or do you want me to?"

All Tiki had to do was look at Tima with puppy-dog eyes and she got the message. "Alright, I'll tell them." Tiki backed up next to Kaiba as Tima turned around to face the boys. "Atem, Yugi, come here." They came to her and she continued. "There's something going on with Tiki that will affect all of us."

Covering Yugi's mouth so he wouldn't explode in frustration, Atem asked, "What's going on?"

Tiki blushed deeply and Kaiba tried to keep his cool but was blushing as well. Tima smiled, shook her head amusingly at their reactions, and answered coolly, "Guys…Tiki's pregnant."

Atem was stunned but not half as stunned as Yugi. He was so shocked that he wavered and had to sit down to keep from fainting. Tima was a little surprised by his reaction and said, "Not what I expected. I thought for sure you WOULD faint."

Yugi then did something that none of them even knew he could do. He exploded. "WHAT THE HECK IS WRONG WITH YOU TIKI? Couldn't you at least wait until after getting married like a normal person? Are you that desperate?"

Tima and Atem were startled his outburst and Kaiba was a little impressed that Yugi had it in him. Tiki, however, was getting as mad as her brother was. "Well, EXCUSE me! For your information, I couldn't wait, thank you very much! I've been waiting for many long years and couldn't wait another second! Besides, I knew the risks! That's why I did it when I did! I don't have any plans about going to college and I don't have to worry about money, either! But let me tell you this; if you don't get rid of this attitude of yours, I'll be out of your life so fast your head will spin!"

Yugi didn't want that so he calmed down a bit. But he still had to know something. "Sorry, but I have to ask. Who's the father?"

Tiki blushed and laughed nervously. Yugi looked at Tima, who shook her head and shrugged. Before he could ask again, Kaiba blushed deeply again and cleared his throat as a way to get their attention. It finally hit everyone. Yugi was shocked. Atem covered his mouth to hide his laughter. Tima grinned. "Kaiba, you dog!" she said in a joking way.

Kaiba smirked and nodded his head as a thank you. Tima grinned even wider and started laughing with Atem. Yugi, however, couldn't take it anymore. He raced upstairs in anger and slammed the door so hard the house shook. Tiki started to go after him but Kaiba held her back. "I suggest you let him sort things out by himself."

"I agree," Atem said, settling down. "I'll try talking to him later, when you guys are gone."

Tima agreed but then thought of something. "Hey, are you guys even engaged or anything?"

Tiki smiled and held up her hand with her engagement ring on her ring finger. Tima smiled too and said, "That makes it okay, then."

Kaiba nodded and took Tiki's hand. "I think we ought to be getting home."

Tiki agreed. "I'll see you guys later."

With that, she and Kaiba headed home. Alone once again, Atem took Tima in his arms. With a sly gleam in his eye, he said, "Ever think of trying again…with having another kid?"

Tima smiled slightly. She remembered their first daughter, Magnolia, who was never seen again after Marik took her away (1). But she felt ready to try one more time. "Wanna start making one?"

Atem blushed. "Uh…if you want to."

Tima grinned. "Ready when you are, baby!"

Atem liked what he was hearing. Scooping her up in his arms, he started to carry her to their bedroom.

---

In Yugi's room, Yugi was confused. "Why the heck did Tiki do that? And with Kaiba of all people! What's wrong with her? Well, if that's the way she's going to be, then I'll do what she threatened to do to me! I'll remove myself from the picture! See if I care!"

In reality, Yugi really DID care and was awfully upset about what he did at the beginning of the summer. All he wanted to do was apologize to Tiki but she made it very awkward with the situation.

(1) For full story about Marik taking Tima's child, read chapter 35 of "Tima and Atem"

Will Yugi stay out of Tiki's life forever? Find out next time!


	17. Truth revealed

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 17: Truth revealed

A month went by since Kaiba and Tiki got married and they were now waiting anxiously for their baby. Tiki was now three months along and loving every minute of it. But there was one thing missing; Yugi. Every since their argument when she made the announcement, he stayed away from her and kept giving off signs that he hated her whenever she tried to contact him.

Finally, Tiki had enough and went to confront Yugi. Kaiba was against it but she was firm with her decision. "I have had it! Yugi has been acting like I don't even exist since that day and he'll miss out on our child's life! He already skipped our wedding! I HAVE to talk to him!"

Kaiba was still a little doubtful but decided to go along with her. He knew from previous experiences that it wasn't wise to mess with her when she was like this. When they arrived at the Game Shop, Tiki looked around and asked where Yugi was. Tima said, "He's not coming out of his room as long as you two are here."

Just then, Atem joined them from upstairs. "Yeah. As soon as I told him you were coming over, he went in his room and locked the door. I just spent the last twenty minutes trying to get him to come out."

Tiki, fuming, stomped up the stairs to try to get Yugi to talk to her herself. Kaiba started to go with her but Tima stopped him. "I think its best you stay out of this. We should let Tiki…explain herself to her brother."

---

At the moment, Tiki was standing in front of the room that she and Yugi once shared. She hesitated at first but knocked on the door three times. On the other side, she heard Yugi say, "Who is it?"

"Yugi, it's me. We really need to talk."

Yugi snapped, "Go away! We have nothing to talk about!"

Tiki sighed and laid her forehead against the door. "Yugi, please…just hear me out. Don't do this…when I'm carrying your niece or nephew. I know you want to be a part of my child's life…and I want you to be a part of his or hers as well."

Hearing nothing, she sighed again and turned to leave when the door opened and Yugi let her in. She went in, smiling at him. He, however, didn't return the smile; he just sat on his bed and waited for her to talk. At first, Tiki felt very uneasy and didn't know what to say. As she looked around, she noticed that the curtain and her bed were gone. So she sat down on a chair across from her brother and said, "You haven't changed much, have you?"

Yugi shrugged. "Neither have you."

"Well, next month, it'll really start to show."

They stayed silent for a while, waiting for the other to talk. Then Tiki said, "I see you redecorated."

Yugi shrugged again. "Well, it's just me again."

Tiki nodded. "Yeah, I—"

Yugi cut her off. "Why did you do it?"

Tiki sighed. "I'm glad ONE of us finally brought this up. Yugi…I don't get why you're so upset. I did it 'cause I WANTED to. Besides, it's not so bad. Seto and I are engaged and we love each other…very much."

Yugi scowled. "I still don't get it. Why does it have to be HIM? Why not someone else? You can do better. Why him? At least, clarify THAT much for me."

Tiki smiled and simply asked, "Why did you marry Tea?"

Yugi didn't see the point of the question but still answered. "Well…because we love each other…and we wanted to be together."

Tiki nodded. "You just answered your own question. Seto and I love each other…more than we can say. Besides, he's changed dramatically from when we first met him. He's caring…and sweet. Our child will show how much we love each other."

Yugi was starting to understand. But there was something still bugging him. Tiki saw the look on his face, which looked like pain, and asked, "You OK?"

Yugi barely nodded and looked away for a moment. "Yeah, I'm fine. I understand now why you did it. But my anger…wasn't the only reason I stayed away."

"Then why?"

Yugi looked deep into Tiki's eyes. "It was because I thought…I was going to lose you…that you would forget about me and our family…now that you're having a family of your own."

Tiki giggled and sat down next to her brother. "That's stupid. Don't even think things like that. I think about you guys all the time. Even though you and I are not related biologically…I still consider you my twin brother. Nothing will ever change that."

Yugi smiled and they hugged.

---

Back downstairs a while later, Kaiba was growing impatient. "What's taking her so long?"

Atem smiled. "Maybe Tiki got through to him and they're talking it over."

Tima chuckled. "Come on, Atem. Such talks doesn't last for an hour."

Atem chuckled as well and went back to work. Just then, Tiki and Yugi joined them. Seeing them, Atem said to Yugi teasingly, "Out of your room so soon? I thought you said you wouldn't come out until Tiki and Kaiba left."

Yugi sweatdropped. "Drop it, Atem. Tiki and I are just fine."

"Then what have you been doing for the last hour?" Kaiba asked with crossed arms.

Tiki laughed. "Seto, we were talking about the wedding he missed." Pushing her brother up in front of Kaiba, she said, "Yugi…do you have something you want to say?"

Looking up, he saw Kaiba waiting for him to talk with an impatient look in his eyes. Yugi laughed nervously and stuttered, "Um…sorry…for the way I acted. I was just…acting stupid. Sorry…for being a jerk."

Kaiba looked at him for a bit while he decided on whether or not he should accept the apology. Finally he nodded and said, "Apology accepted." To Tiki, he said, "Tiki, we got get going."

Tiki nodded, took his hand, and they left. When they were gone, Tima asked, "So what did Tiki say to make you realize why she did it?"

Yugi smiled. "She reminded me of why I married Tea. She did it for the same reasons."

Atem was impressed. "Good example. Speaking of Tea, where is she? She should have been here two hours ago."

Just then the phone rang and Yugi answered it. "Hello, Game Shop. …Tea! Where are you? …Oh…do you want me to come get you? …Well come home as soon as you can. …Love you too. …Bye."

Hanging up, he saw Tima and Atem looking at him curiously. He said, "She's having some car trouble and is stuck at the mechanics. They're almost done, though, and she should be here in about twenty minutes."

Tima tried as hard as she could not to tell Yugi what she thought Tea was REALLY doing. 'Talk about gullible. Tea used that excuse on me a week ago and I heard a guy in the background. She's doing it again. She's cheating. But should I tell Yugi? No, better not, it'll break his heart.' Tima's thoughts were right on the money.

---

Ever since she became a singer, Tea became a different person. She was no longer the caring friend she once was…at least, not around Yugi. Every time she left town or the country for a concert, she would be unfaithful. She had gotten to the point where she sometimes had trouble remembering why she married Yugi in the first place.

Even now, she wasn't anywhere near the mechanics. Instead, she was at a hotel with another guy. Yet it wasn't good enough for her. When the guy left, she mumbled to herself, "What's missing? I've done just about every guy I've met and they're not satisfying. Yugi's just pathetic. So…what am I missing?"

Suddenly she figured out what she yearned for. "That's it! There are only two guys I haven't done it with yet; Atem and Kaiba. Atem is as handsome as ever…and Kaiba is just filthy rich. Tearing them from their pathetic excuses for wives will be easy. I'll just wear a skimpy little outfit, turn on my sexy charm, and they're as good as mine."

Knowing what she wanted, she planned to strike two months from now…during Kaiba and Tiki's Christmas party.

Will Tea's plan work and how will Yugi handle the news if he finds out? Find out next time!


	18. Christmas party and a deadly plan

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 18: Christmas party and a deadly plan

Kaiba and Tiki's Christmas party finally arrived. Getting ready, Tea's plan began to unravel in her mind. She planned to conquer Kaiba first. If she failed (though she highly doubted that), Atem would be next. She picked out the sexiest outfit she had for her to wear to win them over. When Yugi asked about her choice in clothes, she simply said, "It's my party outfit." As she was putting it on, she thought to herself, 'Just wait, you two. Soon you'll have the best lover ever and I'll be rid of Yugi.'

She, Yugi, and their one-year-old son Yami were the first ones to arrive. She acted like she was glad to see Tiki but, on the inside, she was growling. 'What a pathetic woman, to think she can keep Kaiba all to herself,' she thought as Tiki showed her and her family where the party would be.

Soon everyone else started arriving. Tea stayed in the corner, surveying everything and waiting for the right moment to strike. She decided to keep her long jacket on so that no one would see her outfit and get suspicious. She kept looking for Kaiba but couldn't find him. She didn't ask where he was in fear of her plan being discovered.

Tiki started to get a little suspicious of Tea. She hardly moved from her spot all evening. She was going to ask her what was wrong when the doorbell rang. Realizing who it was, she raced to the door and opened it. Sure enough, there was Atem and Tima. Tiki lit up. "Hi guys! Come on in! It's about time you guys got here," she said playfully.

Tima laughed and head-locked her friend gently. "It's called holiday traffic. By the way, you look beautiful! How far along are you now?"

Tiki blushed. "Four months and loving every minute of it!"

Tima smiled and turned around to talk to Atem, only to discover him gone. Shrugging, she turned back and took a look at the party room. Looking around, she found them and slightly laughed at what they were doing. Impressed, she said jokingly, "Not bad. I didn't know Kaiba knew all of this was fun."

Tiki laughed and looked at the room with pride. The room was packed with their friends and family, all having a blast. Mai and Serenity were doing a "Dance Dance Revolution" game, competing to see who had the best moves. Joey and Tristan were playing a fighting video game and arguing over the last play. Mokuba and Rebecca were playing a game of Duel Monsters, with Rebecca cleaning her boyfriend's clock. Duke Devlin and Miho was keeping Yami and Mai and Joey's two-and-a-half year old twins, Shizuka and Jounouchi, entertained. Atem and Yugi were doing a duet on karaoke. Tiki was impressed with Atem's voice, which was actually really good. "I didn't know Atem had such a good singing voice."

Tima sweatdropped. "I found out the hard way. We went to a karaoke bar a month ago and I dared him to try it. He did and now…let's just say that he's hooked."

Tiki laughed but stopped when she realized that a few people were missing. "Hmm…we still have a few guests missing."

As soon as she said that, the doorbell rang and she went to get it. Tima stayed where she was and looked at Tea. Tea returned the glance with a smirk. Tima merely said with her fingers, "I'm watching you."

Before Tea could remark, Yugi came up to her and said he wanted to play "DDR" with her. She agreed and went with him. Tima shook her head at his ignorance of her dirty ways and was about to join her friends when Ryou passed her. Surprised, she turned to Tiki who was at her side, "You invited him too?"

Tiki didn't answer; instead she looked behind them and nodded. Before Tima could react, a hand touched her shoulder and a familiar voice said, "Hello, Tima."

Tima gasped, for she recognized that voice. Turning around, she saw standing there was her good friend…Ishizu. She laughed and hugged her. Tiki said with pride, "Surprise."

Tima was surprised but happy. Looking around, she asked, "Where's Marik? Is he coming?"

Ishizu shook her head. Tima sadly nodded. "It's for the best. I only wanted him here so I could kill him for taking my daughter."

Ishizu put both hands on Tima's shoulders and said, "You don't need to kill him. His guilt is doing it all by itself. But he wanted me to tell you that he's sorry…and he misses you."

Tima nodded and Ishizu left her alone. Tiki asked, "Even after a year, you still hate him?"

Tima asked, "Wouldn't you?"

Tiki nodded. "Yeah…I would. But let's not let our anger ruin the party. We're here to have fun.

Tima agreed. Realizing something, she then asked, "How come Rose couldn't come?"

Tiki sweatdropped. "My own sister didn't come because she's hosting her own party for her new modeling job."

Looking around, Tima noticed that there was one person missing. "Tiki, where's the host?"

"Seto's in his upstairs office. Wrapping a special gift for me, I might add."

That was all Tea needed to hear. She left the game and told Ryou to play with Yugi. Going up to Tiki, she asked, "Want me to get him?"

Tiki nodded and Tea headed upstairs. Tiki started to go join the party when Tima stopped her. "That wasn't very wise."

"What wasn't?"

"Letting Tea get Kaiba. She's probably after him, you know."

"What? Why? She's married and has a kid."

"I know; it doesn't seem like her. But she's been extremely unfaithful ever since she became a singer. She's a completely different person now. She goes out for no reason at all and comes home at all hours of the night. It's just not right, even for her."

Now Tiki was getting worried. She thought over what Tima just said and what she herself had noticed. Realizing what Tea could do, she raced after her. Tima watched her go in anticipation, then walked into the party room and where the karaoke was where Atem called her over to do a duet with him.

---

In his office, Kaiba was almost done wrapping Tiki's gift. He realized he forgot to buy it on the way home that afternoon and was now rushing to get it ready. "I can't believe I forgot to do this," he said quietly to himself. "I'm such an idiot."

"You're not an idiot," sounded a voice from the door. Kaiba looked up and saw Tea there looking at him strangely. "Uh…hi, Tea," he said.

Tea smiled and pulled the door closed but left it a little open so that Tiki could see if she came by. She then let her jacket slide slowly down her shoulders to try to turn Kaiba on. He was anything but turned on. She had on a mini skirt and a tube top. "Isn't that outfit's a bit too revealing for this type of weather?"

Tea quietly laughed as she started toward him. "Don't you like it? I'm wearing it special…for you."

Kaiba raised his eyebrow, getting more suspicious by the second. "What do you mean you're wearing that for me? I'm married and so are you!"

Tea was now crawling across his desk toward him, knocking away the gift. "Why have her…when you can have me? I'll give you everything you've ever dreamed of. How about it?"

Kaiba raised his hand in declining the offer. "Sorry but I have better things to do than to bow down to your unfaithful ways…like finish wrapping my WIFE'S present. So leave before I get angry."

With that, he got up and finished wrapping the gift on the ground. Before he could get up, though, Tea threw herself on top of him with a crazed look in her eye. She was about to kiss him when the door flew open and there stood Tiki, growling. Tea silently smiled, thinking, 'Perfect.'

Pushing her off him, Kaiba stood up and brushed himself off. "Tiki, this isn't what it looks like!"

Tea stood up, acting like she had just been violated. "How could you, Kaiba? We're both married and yet you still…how could you?"

Tiki was fuming and came toward them, hand ready to slap someone. Kaiba closed his eyes in horror, fearing that he was going to get slapped. He heard the slap but didn't feel it. Opening his eyes, he saw that Tea was the one who got slapped.

Tea held her face, shocked that her plan didn't work. Tiki, still glaring, went over to Kaiba, kissed him firmly, and looked at Tea again, saying menacingly, "He's mine, understand?"

Tea felt the pain of defeat and quickly made her escape without her jacket. "Uh…yeah, I got it. I was just testing his loyalty to you, that's all. After all, I have my Yugi. See you downstairs." Before she shut the door, they heard her say to herself, "Not to worry; time to get guy number 2."

Now alone, Tiki looked at Kaiba, still a little mad by what happened. He did a deep bow. "Tiki, forgive me! We didn't do anything, I swear! I swear on my brother's life! We didn't do anything!" Surprisingly, he heard her laugh. Straightening up, he asked, "What's so funny?"

Tiki laughed a little more before she answered. "I know you didn't do anything. I was outside the whole time. You did beautifully, by the way. The way you resisted her like that…it was wonderful!"

Kaiba breathed a sigh of relief and hugged her. "Tiki, you know I'd never betray you. You're the only one for me."

Tiki nodded. "I know, just like you're the only man for me. But what she just said bothered me. Who do you think she meant by guy num—"

They shared a look of terror and whispered at the same time, "Atem."

Will Tea get away with it? Find out next time!


	19. Plan and life failed

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 19: Plan and life failed

Tea made her way downstairs after failing to get Kaiba, still holding her cheek. Sneaking a look into the room, she saw Atem leave the karaoke station, complaining of a sore throat. Tima teased him by saying, "Maybe if you didn't hog the mic, you wouldn't have a sore throat!"

Everyone burst out laughing as Atem made his way to the kitchen, singing bits of his last song. Tea watched him and followed him, ready to execute plan "B." Tima saw Tea follow him and went to stop her when Tiki and Kaiba ran into her. "Tima, where's Atem?" Tiki asked.

"Kitchen. Why? What's going on?"

"For starters, Tea is a slut!" Kaiba said sharply. Seeing Tiki and Tima's look, he shrugged innocently. "Well, she is!"

Tiki smiled. "Next time, let me say that." Kaiba rolled his eyes while Tiki turned back to Tima. "She just tried to steal Seto and we think she's after Atem as well."

Tima's eyes grew wide and she growled, "I'll have that woman's head!" With that, she started toward the kitchen.

---

Atem poured himself a glass of water and downed it. Suddenly he heard in his ear, "Hey sexy." He spat the water out in surprise and wiped his mouth, coughing a little. Turning around, he saw Tea there looking at him weirdly. "Hi, Tea. Stop looking at me like that."

Tea moved even closer. "Like what?"

Atem backed away until his back hit the wall. "Like you're ready to do something wild."

Tea smiled and put hands on either side of his head, preventing him from escaping. "But that's exactly what I'm ready for. Aren't you tired of Tima? Don't you want someone more…exciting?"

Atem shook his head. "No, I'm very happy with Tima, thank you. But what about you? You have Yugi."

Tea smiled. "Who needs Yugi…when there's you?"

She came very close to kissing him when Atem shoved her away and headed for the door. Opening, he found Tima standing there with her arms folded and her foot tapping. He backed away when Tea joined his side and grabbed his arm. "Take that, Tima! He's mine now!"

"What?" Atem almost yelled and took his arm back. "Tea, I don't want you! I don't even want to be your friend anymore!"

"Oh, you don't have to defend yourself, Ai," Tima said very coldly. She balled her right hand into a fist and came at them, growling. Atem prepared himself but she didn't hit him. Instead, she punched Tea square in the nose. Tea fell to the floor and held her nose, which was already starting to bleed. Tima shook her hand in pain. "Ow! Never knew hitting someone would hurt this much."

Atem took her hand and messaged it. "Ti…you know I'd never cheat on you. It was HER who was doing all the pushing."

Tima smiled and took his hand with her other hand. "I know. I overheard everything."

Atem smiled and continued to message her hand. Tea got up, still holding her nose, and growled, "Why don't you two get a hotel?"

Tima smirked. "Oh, like you do whenever you find a guy to cheat on Yugi with?"

Tea blushed in anger and was about to answer when Yugi came in to see what was taking Yami so long. Seeing Tea's bloody nose and Tima's injured hand, he immediately jumped to conclusions. "Tima why did you hit her?"

Before Tima could answer, Tea went to him, acting shocked. "I don't know. She just came after me for no reason."

Tima and Atem couldn't believe what they were hearing and hoped Yugi would figure out she was lying. Unfortunately, he believed her and yelled at them while he got Tea some ice. When she said she was alright but would remain there for a bit, Yugi left, glaring daggers at his friends. When he left, Tea chuckled. "There's nothing you can do to change his mind. He's already under my spell."

Atem started thinking of what to do for revenge and how to show Yugi the truth about Tea when he got a bright idea. He took Tima out into the hall and told her everything. She liked the idea and agreed to help him. With that, they went around to everyone but the children and explained what was going on and what they would do to help. Yugi took longer to convince but he eventually gave in.

---

Tea was alone in the kitchen, eyes closed and just relaxing, when she heard something that sounded like running and a clatter. She opened her eyes and saw no one there. Then the door opened and there were Atem and Kaiba.

Thinking she had another chance, she beckoned them to join her. They did, looking at her the same way she looked at them. Seeing their look, she figured she won. "So…what can I do for you boys?" she asked coolly.

Atem grinned. "We thought it over and—"

Kaiba cut him off. "We'll take you up on your offer."

Tea lit up. "Wonderful. You're willing to leave your pathetic excuses for wives for me?" Seeing their nod, she added, "What are you going to do with them?"

Kaiba waved his hand. "Don't worry. We'll take care of everything."

Tea grinned. But before she could say anything, Atem asked, "One thing, Tea darling. I have to ask because I'm very curious and I have to know; how men have you actually done?"

Kaiba added, "And there's something I want to know too; why did you marry Yugi if you really wanted us?"

Tea leaned on the counter proudly. "I must've done about a hundred men, I think. I lost track a while ago. As for why I married Yugi, I only did it for two reasons; he was the only guy among our friends who had feelings for me and he looks like you, Atem. The reason I didn't come after you guys sooner was because I had my child to worry about, I had no chance to get away with it, and I was still caring. But since my career launched, I've changed…and I like it. Now I get to travel all over the place, which allows me to do as many men as I want."

Looking at them, she saw a gleam of mischief in their eyes and grins on their faces and took it the wrong way. "You guys want to…get started?"

Kaiba scoffed and leaned against the wall with his arms folded. "With YOU? Please! I have better ways to waste my time!"

That hit Tea like an unexpected blow. Atem added with a sly grin, "Now that we have your confession of your slutty ways, Yugi will leave you for good and we'll have a little peace around here."

Tea smirked. "How? Yugi didn't hear me say that and—"

"Actually, I did hear," sounded Yugi's voice behind her. Freezing, she slowly turned around and, sure enough, there was Yugi, looking very hurt and furious. Suddenly all the closets opened and everyone was there. Tea was stunned to see them and stuttered, "How—how—?"

Tima smirked. "Thank Ai for that. After your little performance a few minutes ago, he concocted this whole plan. You are unbelievable, you know that? Can you say…BUSTED!"

Tea swallowed hard and turned back toward Yugi, who was still fuming. She started to say something when Joey and Tristan grabbed her, took her to the door, and literally threw her out. Yugi followed, took off his wedding ring, and threw it at her, yelling, "You can kiss our marriage and our kid good-bye!"

With that, the door slammed shut. Tea tried to get back inside but everything was locked shut. Now she started to fear for her life. When they threw her out, they didn't give her back her coat. Looking at the nearest window, she saw Tiki there, holding up her jacket for her to see and sticking her tongue out at her.

Growling, Tea tried to walk somewhere in order to keep warm but collapsed from the cold. She would have frozen to death if someone hadn't seen her. Picking her up and recognizing her, he got her in his car and started to warm her up. She stirred and, opening her eyes, recognized her rescuer. It was Valon.

She tried to push him away but couldn't because the cold zapped her of her strength. Valon stopped her from moving any further. "Don't move. You could froze to death out there. What were you thinking, wearing this outfit in this kind of weather? You know what? I don't want to know. Let's just get you warmed up. Let me take you home to get you some help." Tea barely nodded before she drifted off to sleep.

---

Back at the party, Yugi apologized to Atem and Tima for not believing them. They accepted the apology and got back to having fun. An hour later, everything that happened with Tea was forgotten and Yugi's feelings for her were gone.

At the stroke of midnight, everyone gathered around the tree to open gifts. The children were already asleep in Tiki's old room. Tiki opened Kaiba's gift first and gasped in astonishment at what she saw. The gift that he got her that afternoon was a very beautiful diamond pendent. He put it on her and had his arms wrapped around her the whole time they were unwrapping presents.

Upon special request after all the gifts were opened, Yugi, Atem, and Duke (who wanted to try it out) did a song that everyone danced to. Everything was the way it should.

What will Tiki's child be like and how will she handle child-birthing? Find out next time!


	20. Talks and contractions

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 20: Talks and contractions

Nine months have officially passed since Tiki pronounced that she was pregnant. The time was drawing very near. She and Kaiba had already started preparing for the baby's arrival. They selected Tiki's old room as a nursery and completely rearranged it. They painted sky blue with a few clouds here and there and put in all the necessary furniture. They also stacked the room with a bunch of small soft toys for the baby to play with. Little did they know that the night would come closer than either of them expected.

Kaiba came home late one night and was surprised to not see Tiki there to greet him like any other night. So he went looking around for her. He checked outside, their room, and anywhere else he could think of. Unable to find her, he finally called out her name. That's when he heard, "I'm in the baby's room."

Kaiba smiled and shook his head amusingly. 'Why didn't I think of that?' he wondered. 'The time is drawing near, after all.'

Still smiling, he entered the room but still didn't see her. Feeling a breeze, he saw that the balcony door was open and went to the open doorway. Tiki was out on the balcony in a white nightgown, looking up at the stars with her back to him. He took a moment and studied her. She seemed to glow from the moon's soft light. Unable to take it anymore, he went up to her and wrapped his arms around her. She silently gasped but then giggled. "Seto…don't sneak up on me like that."

Kaiba just kept smiled as he hugged her some more. "I'm sorry. How come you're out here?" he asked.

Tiki placed her arms around his and leaned closer to him. "Well…the time is drawing near, after all. These nine months have gone by like a dream."

Kaiba didn't answer; instead he just sighed deeply. Tiki heard this and wondered what was going on. "You OK, Seto?"

Kaiba raised his eyebrow in confusion. "Yes, I'm fine…what makes you ask?"

Tiki merely shrugged. "Well…you usually sigh like that when you're troubled by something."

Kaiba smiled more and turned her around. "Then…this is an exception. Nothing is troubling me at all. I've never been happier than I am right now. I'm happy once again, I'm married to the love of my life and…" he put his hand on her stomach, "…we have a child on the way."

Tiki smiled and hugged him. "Seto…I'm getting a little scared. I mean…it's getting closer with each passing day and…I have to admit…I'm nervous."

Kaiba smiled and hugged her back. "Don't think you're the only one getting nervous. Think how nervous I'M getting!"

Tiki giggled. "What do you mean?"

Kaiba's face turned a little sad as he looked at her. "Well…you have more experience than I do…when it comes to family."

Tiki suddenly knew what he was talking about. "Oh…I see."

Kaiba nodded, thinking about his past for a minute. Then he heard Tiki say sadly, "Your life must have had some bright points in it. It couldn't have been one sad event after another."

Kaiba thought this over and smiled. "True…I've had my share of bright spots. Taking over the company, helping my brother…but there is one part in life that beats everything."

Tiki raised her eyebrow playfully. "What would that be, pray tell?"

Kaiba at first didn't answer. He just hugged her. He then whispered in her ear, "Meeting you." Tiki blushed but smiled as he continued. "Meeting you and getting to know you unlocked a certain door in my soul that I thought I could never open again. It was the door of happiness. Even though I tried to deny for years for some stupid reason…you were healing my heart with everything you were doing. Just seeing your smile helped me the most."

Tiki didn't understand. "What do you mean?"

Kaiba looked at her and Tiki thought she saw a tear in his eye. "To see someone care about me as much as you did…reminded me that there are kind-hearted people in the world. Gozaburo kind of made me forget that…and you told me otherwise. For that alone…I am forever grateful."

Tiki smiled and kissed him. Kaiba savored the moment as he thought about everything he'd been through…losing his parents, losing his soul to Gozaburo, losing his pride to Yugi…and yet Tiki helped him recover and made him forget about all of that. He fully realized at that moment how much she had saved him. With that, a tear escaped his eye. Breaking the kiss, he wiped it away. Seeing Tiki's look of concern, he shook his head. "It's nothing."

With that, Tiki turned her attention back to the moon. "It's beautiful…isn't it?"

Kaiba wrapped his arms around her and looked up at the moon with her. "Yes…but not as beautiful as you."

Tiki blushed and kept looking out at the night sky. They remained there for a few minutes, holding each other and looking out into the night. Then, shivering, Kaiba started to go in. Seeing Tiki's look of mock hurt, he smiled and said, "Don't stay out too long."

Tiki nodded and Kaiba left. He first checked on Mokuba and pulled his covers closer to his brother's chin. He then went to his room to get ready for bed himself. Once there, he changed out of his work clothes and got into his pajamas. He then climbed into bed and started to read his novel. He stayed there until Tiki arrived. But there was something different; she was clutching her stomach and her face showed great pain. Before Kaiba would ask, she said, It's time."

Kaiba's eyes grew wide as he quickly got out of bed and went to her. "My God, you're in labor?" he asked.

Tiki could just nod as another contraction caused her to fall into Kaiba's arms. He tried to stand her up but she motioned for him to let her stay for a second. He then said to her, "I can only imagine how pain you're in."

Still groaning, she said quickly, "I so very much don't think so."

Kaiba was starting to freak out but kept his cool. "All right, just breath and everything will be all right. We'll go immediately go to the hospital."

Tiki nodded as she tried to stand up. "All right…and, by the way, thanks for not freaking out. That really helps. Also, I've already got an overnight bag outside the door."

Kaiba looked outside to see a bag just outside the doorway. He smirked. "Thinking ahead, are you?"

Tiki smiled painfully. "Better safe than sorry. You better get Mokuba and the driver."

Kaiba nodded as he helped her down the hall. Knocking on Mokuba's door, he heard on the other side, "Go away!"

Kaiba said, "Mokuba, she's in labor! Let's go."

A minute later, Mokuba emerged in his pajamas and a robe. Kaiba looked at his outfit for a minute and Mokuba responded, "I don't have time to change. We got to get her to the hospital."

Tiki agreed as another contraction made her wince. Keeping her up, Kaiba and Mokuba helped her down the stairs. Once they were downstairs, Mokuba went to get the driver. Once they were alone, she said, "Can we go a little faster, please?"

Kaiba shook his head. "No, we don't want to add stress to you or the baby."

Tiki snapped, "I'm happen to be in great pain here and you're talking about stress? We're getting there NOW!"

With that, she shook her arms, getting them to let go, and head for the door a little faster. She didn't get very far. A rather large contraction almost brought her to her knees but Kaiba caught her in time. She whimpered quietly, "Ow…that hurt."

Kaiba brought her up to her feet. "That's why we're going slowly. I don't think you want to have another episode like that."

Tiki quickly shook her head as Mokuba joined them. "The driver is waiting in the limo. Let's go."

They helped her out of the house and into the limo. Tiki kept having contractions every seven minutes which meant it was almost time.

How will child birth go? (Sorry to make you wait again!) Find out next time!


	21. Child birth

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters. Dark Mage of Sea owns Merina.

Thank you, YugiYami6242, for your story that's on my favorite list. Without it, I probably never would have been able to write this chapter.

Chapter 21: Child birth

Finally they reached the hospital. Tiki was more relieved than Kaiba and Mokuba since she was in immense pain. She kept screaming for Kaiba to hurry up with getting her registered. Mokuba had to clamp his hand on her mouth in order to shut her up. He blushed deeply as he looked at all the people looking at them.

Thankfully, they knew why Tiki was screaming. One thing that helped them realize that was that she had another contraction. Mokuba had to use all of his strength to keep her up. Kaiba came over and said, "Another one? It's only been five minutes!"

Tiki groaned, "I'd say…our baby…is eager to come out!"

A nurse came up to them with a wheelchair and said to Tiki, "We got a room all set up for you. We're taking you up there now."

Tiki nodded as she sat down. The nurse pushed her along down the hall with Kaiba and Mokuba right behind them. Tiki kept wincing from all the contractions. When they finally got to the room, she couldn't take the pain anymore. "Get me some painkillers or something to dull this pain!"

Mokuba once again covered her mouth. The nurse smiled. "It's alright. Some first-time mothers are like this. Here, put this." She handed Tiki a hospital gown. While Tiki was getting dressed in the bathroom, the nurse prepared a shot of epidural. Seeing the boys' confused look, she explained, "This shot will help dull the pain until she's ready to give birth."

Twenty minutes later, Tiki emerged with her hospital gown on. After hearing what the shot was, she sighed in relief. "At last…some peace."

The nurse smiled and took Tiki to the bed. She immediately laid down on the bed and held her arm, waiting for the nurse to deliver the shot. Chuckling, the nurse said, "The shot doesn't go in your arm."

Tiki raised her eyebrow. "Where does it go, then?"

The nurse said calmly, "It goes in your spine."

Tiki paled at the sound of that. Kaiba and Mokuba's eyes went wide when they heard it as well. "Does it have to go in my spine?" Tiki asked meekly.

The nurse nodded and Tiki groaned. Resigned to her fate, she rolled over and closed her eyes. Sensing her fear, Kaiba went over and said, "Want me to hold your hand?"

Tiki nodded and took his hand. Taking a deep breath, she waited to the shot to be over. The nurse stuck the shot in the bottom of Tiki's spine and Tiki squeezed Kaiba's hand tightly. Finally the pain of the shot and the contractions were gone. The nurse immediately hooked her up to a blood pressure monitor and heart monitor for the baby. Tiki moaned quietly and fell asleep. Kaiba smiled as he stroked her head. "She must be exhausted. Let's leave her be."

"I'm afraid we can't do that right now," said a doctor coming into the room. "We have to check to see how dilated she is."

Kaiba was unfamiliar with all the terms when it came to child birth and he was getting very confused. "What?" is all he could say.

The doctor said, "We have to see if we can feel the baby's head. That way, we'll know when she's ready to give birth."

Kaiba nodded, saying that he understood. But then he realized what the doctor meant. "Oh! You mean…you want to…put your finger…"

The doctor nodded and Kaiba blushed deeply. Mokuba started putting two and two together when he finally figured what he meant. He blushed just as deeply as his brother. Groaning, Kaiba went over and woke Tiki up. She said tiredly, "What?"

Kaiba whispered in her ear what the doctor was going to do and she woke up immediately. "He's going to WHAT?"

The doctor said, "We have to do to find out where the baby is."

Tiki grumbled but nodded. The doctor checked and she closed her eyes, once again waiting for it to be over. Ending the check, the doctor said, "You're dilated three centimeters. We'll check you in three hours."

Tiki said sharply, "Fine. Now let me sleep!" With that, she laid down and went back to sleep.

Kaiba smiled and went out into the hall. Seeing Mokuba's confused look, Kaiba said, "I'm going to prepare a little surprise for Tiki. You better get some sleep during that time." With that, he left and Mokuba fell asleep on the couch.

---

A few hours later, Tiki was woken up again by Kaiba. "The doctor needs to check you again."

Tiki groaned but let him do the checking. The doctor ended and said, "You're at seven centimeters. A couple more hours and you'll be able to start pushing."

Tiki said, "Finally!" The doctor chuckled and left. Tiki said to her husband, "I gotta tell ya; I love being pregnant…but I hate being in labor."

Kaiba chuckled and Tiki noticed a sly look in his eye. "What are you up to?"

Kaiba grinned and drew back the curtain. Tiki squeaked because all of her friends were there. "What are you guys doing here?"

Tima came over and gave Tiki a hug. "Are you kidding? We wouldn't miss this for the world!"

Tiki smiled. "Wait a minute…who's the new blond?"

She was referring to the blond woman with purple eyes standing next to Yugi. Yugi blushed and said, "Tiki, this is Merina. Merina, this is my sister Tiki."

Joey said, "Merina is Yugi's lady."

Tiki grinned. "Go, Yugi! Decided to get back in the game, huh?"

The boys laughed as Yugi blushed. Merina just smiled and hugged him. "It's OK."

Serenity said, "Yeah, it is OK to be in love."

Tristan agreed as he wrapped his arms around her. Tiki then asked, "Where's Ryou and Rose?"

Duke said, "They can't make it. They have different time zones than us. Rose sends you her best wishes, though."

Tiki said, "So you did talk to her."

Duke nodded. Mai was about to add something else when Tiki said, "I'm sorry to cut our little reunion short but I need as much sleep as I can get tonight."

Everyone agreed and found a little place to sleep. Tima laid down at Tiki's feet. Yugi and Merina joined Mokuba on the couch. Serenity and Mai took the comfy chairs. Duke and Kaiba took the hard chairs. Joey and Tristan took the floor. Tima took a little longer to fall asleep because she noticed Tiki had a little flicker of fear in her eyes. "Are you OK?"

Tiki smiled. "Yeah…I guess. I'm just…a little nervous."

Tima smiled and took her friend's hand. "Don't be. It's a wonderful feeling to bring life into the world."

Tiki smiled and went to sleep. Tima then turned over and thought, 'Unfortunately, in the beginning, the pain takes away the joy.'

---

A few hours later, the doctor came in and woke everyone up. Seeing him, Tima woke Tiki and said, "The doctor is back."

Tiki rolled her eyes and let the doctor check. The other girls were smart to cover their boys' eyes so that they wouldn't see. Kaiba just turned away while covering Mokuba's eyes. The doctor finished and said, "You're at ten centimeters. We can begin."

Tiki's eyes went wide and so did all the boys. "It's time?" she asked.

The doctor nodded as he got nurses to come in to help. While he was putting on a mask, gloves, and a paper suit, Tiki noticed that there was pain again. "Why does it hurt again?" she asked.

Tima winced as she remembered going through birth. "The…epidural…wears off when it's time to push."

Tiki looked at her with glaring eyes. "Couldn't you have mentioned this SOONER?" she hissed as perspiration started to break out on her forehead.

Tima shrugged. "Sorry?" was all she could manage.

Tiki growled, "Oh, you will be sorry."

She would have added more if she hadn't had a shot of pain go up her body. Seeing this, Tima said, "Guys, let's wait outside."

"WHAT?" they all said together.

Tima was insistent. "Tiki doesn't need us to distract her. Kaiba, you stay to give her support. Everyone else…out!"

Everyone protested but Tima just pushed them out and shut the door. Kaiba wondered why she was insistent about this but Tiki's screaming for his help brought him back to reality. He started toward her but the doctor handed replicas of what he was wearing. "I'm sorry, sir, but you have to wear these if you want to be near her. We don't want the baby to get type of bacteria or virus."

Kaiba nodded and quickly put everything on. Tiki looked in pain and Kaiba thought, 'I am SO glad I'm not a female.'

Groaning in pain, Tiki reached for his hand and he grabbed hers. She said, "Seto…help me…"

Kaiba freaked out. "Uh…I don't think I can…"

"JUST KEEP TALKING TO ME!" she screamed at him.

A little spooked by her yelling at him, Kaiba nodded and kept talking to her. The doctor kept telling her to push for ten second and then take a breather. Tiki kept screaming in pain. Outside, all the guys were freaking out from the screams. Joey said, "This…is what a woman goes through to give birth?"

Tima groaned as she remembered her past life. "Imagine giving birth without any medicine at all."

Tristan shuddered. "Who would through that?"

Tima growled, "That's what we women went through back in Ancient Egypt, thank you!"

The boys shuddered even more. The girls just backed up a little as they thought about all that pain. Back in the room, the doctor said, "We're almost there. Just one more push and we'll be done."

Tiki screamed, "Finally!" She gave one final push and screamed bloody murder. Finally the sound of a baby crying filled the room. Tiki fell back on her pillow. Kaiba was beat as well but happy at the same time. He chuckled and kissed his wife's forehead. "You did it."

Tiki laughed a little with a few tears falling down her face. Kaiba asked, "Why the tears?"

Tiki just smiled. "It's this overflowing emotion…of bring life into this world. This must be what all mothers go through."

Kaiba smiled. Just then, the nurse came over with their new baby girl. Tiki took her child and saw her up close. She was beautiful with crystal blue eyes and blond hair that was so light, it was almost white. Looking at her, Kaiba asked, "What shall we call her?"

Tiki got an idea. "Before I tell you, let me ask you this; doesn't she look a lot like Kisara from Ancient Egypt?"

Kaiba took the baby and looked at her closely. "Yes…she does. So?"

Tiki looked at him. "So…let's name her after her."

Kaiba thought about it. "Sure…it suits her."

A few minutes later, Tima opened the door and said, "Shall we meet the newest member of the family?"

Tiki smiled and said, "Yes. Come meet Kisara."

With that said, everyone swarmed in. They each took turns holding little Kisara until. The nurse took her back so that they could get all the proper measurements in the maternity ward. Once the nurse left, Kaiba said to Tiki jokingly, "Any chance of having another kid?"

Tiki sniggered. "It wouldn't be a bad idea. But it won't happen for quite a while."

Find out just how long she waited to have another kid next time!


	22. Child number two!

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 22: Child number two!

Five years had passed and Kaiba and Tiki couldn't be happier. Their little girl Kisara was a wonderful child and she kept them busy. Tiki had to give up theater acting so she could look after her daughter but she said that it was worth it. Kaiba didn't see her as much as he wanted but the times he did spend with her were precious.

Kisara loved everything about life. She was curious about everything and that got her trouble at times. She was also really hyper and was always running around the house. Because of that, she always had bruises on her legs from tripping.

But the one thing she wanted more than anything was a little sister. She loved being the center of attention but it was lonely at time. She envied her cousin for her having a younger brother. She would always draw pictures with an extra little girl. Tiki noticed that and got an idea.

---

Nine months later, Kisara woke up one morning just like any other days. But this day was definitely different compared to any other day. Grabbing her favorite teddy bear, Kisara made her way outside her room, looking for her mother. But she couldn't find her. Neither could she find her father.

Rushing down the stairs, she heard someone talking and she light up. Going around the corner, she ran right into Tima. She fell down and looked up at Tima with wide eyes. Tima giggled and said, "Once again, you fall again. It seems like you like the floor. I wonder if you were an animal in your past life."

Granted Tima was joking since she knew who Kisara's past life was. She also knew that her past life was on the ground a lot because of her looks. Kisara giggled. "Hi, Auntie Tima! Where's Mommy?"

From the kitchen, Atem said, "Your parents are at the hospital. They should be home in a few hours."

Kisara got up and said, "What's a hospital?"

Tima said, "It's where people go when they are really sick."

"Is Mommy sick?"

Atem hesitated since he didn't want to tell Kisara why Tiki was in the hospital. "Um…your Mom's…"

Tima said, "Your Mom's getting you a new baby sister."

Kisara smiled brightly and was about to say something when her cousins, five-year-old red-head Jemima and two-year-old black-haired Noah (reincarnation of Noah), grabbed her from behind. They all fell to the ground, laughing their heads off. Jemima said, "Come on; let's eat breakfast!"

Noah nodded quickly. Kisara agreed and rushed to her seat. Jemima and Noah quickly joined her and waited for their breakfast. Atem chuckled. "Here's breakfast."

Tima said as she rubbed his cheek with hers, "You're such a good cook."

All three kids said, "Eww!" at the same time. Tima giggled and said, "Stop it. We can do this whenever we want."

Noah just stuck his tongue out to show his disgust. Atem said, "You better stick that tongue back in your mouth, young man."

Noah immediately sucked in his tongue back in his mouth. Kisara and Jemima giggled at him. He just grinned. Tima said, "I think these little ones are ready for their pancakes."

The three kids cheered as Atem served them their pancakes. They were about to start eating when they heard the door open and Kaiba yell out, "We're home!"

Kisara flew from her chair to go meet her parents. Jemima and Noah followed their cousin. Tima said to Atem, "They're home earlier than I expected.."

Atem looked at her skeptically. "What do you mean? Did you expect her to come home this afternoon?"

Tima gave him an attitude look. "Remember when Noah was born…how long I was in labor?"

Atem shuddered. "How long was it…fifteen hours?"

Tima groaned. "I wish. It was twenty hours."

Atem shuddered at that thought. Just then, Tiki walked in with a baby in her arms. Tima went up to her and said, "Can I hold her?"

Tiki handed Tima her daughter. "Her name is Lily."

Atem asked, "Why Lily?"

Tiki blushed. "It's my second favorite flower."

Holding little Lily, Tima asked, "Your second favorite? What's your first?"

Kaiba came up from behind Tiki and gave her a rose. "This…is her favorite."

Tiki blushed as the kids came back in. Kisara came up to Tima and said, "I wanna see my sister!"

Tima bent down so that Kisara could see her little sister. She was a cute little brunette with innocent blue eyes. Kisara said, "Can I hold her?"

Tiki said as she took Lily, "Sorry, sweetheart. You're too little."

Kisara pouted and Jemima and Noah giggled. But Kisara still gave her sister a big kiss and enjoyed having her around. Everyone thought that everything was going to go smoothly for the rest of their lives. They were wrong.

What could go wrong? Find out next time!


	23. Every girl’s worst nightmare

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 23: Every girl's worst nightmare

The years went by without a care. Kaiba continued to run the company, with his amusement parks spreading like wildfire and his Duel Academy flourishing. Tiki continued to be active in the theater. Kisara grew up and became a model and TV actress. Lily became very popular in her sophomore class. Everyone believed that the rest of the years would go just as smoothly. They were wrong.

It all happened one day after a rehearsal for her next play. Everyone had finished and most had already left. The few actors who still remained were out of their costumes but Tiki decided to keep hers on a little longer. It was a stripper's outfit that made her look like trash but that fit her part for the play she was doing, which was the story of a stripper. While she was gathering the trash, Tiki's red-head friend/side-kick Sarah noticed a guy sitting in the back. "Hey, excuse me! You shouldn't be here! This is a private rehearsal!"

The guy refused to move. Tiki watched him out of the corner of her eye as she continued going over her lines. What freaked her out was the way he was looking at her. His eyes had a spark of evil that was evident from across the room and made her feel very uncomfortable. Sarah kept yelling at him, trying to get him to leave, and he refused to move. Giving up, Sarah went to Tiki and sighed, very annoyed. "I don't get it. I've done everything I can think of; ask, coax, plead. I even threatened to call the police. But he still refuses to budge."

Tiki offered, "Let me try. After all, he's been looking at me this whole time."

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Hey…if you can get him to leave…more power to you."

Tiki grinned and playfully shoved her friend. Turning to the man, she shouted to him, "Excuse me. Would you please leave? This is a private rehearsal and, besides…we're done for the day. You'll have to come back opening night. But please…leave."

The man slowly got up and made his way to the door. Before he left, he looked back at Tiki and pretended to shot her with his finger. Tiki shuddered a little and the man smirked at this. Then he left. Sarah was impressed. "You DO have a way with words."

Tiki giggled. Sarah then asked, "When are you going to change? You really look bad in that."

Tiki grinned. "Hey, it's how the character looks in the part we went over today. Besides…I want to see Seto's reaction when he sees me in this."

Sarah sniggered. "I think he'll flip."

As soon as she said this, Tiki's cell phone rang. She picked it up and said, "This is Tiki."

"Hi, love," Kaiba's voice rang on the other side.

Tiki blushed. "Hi, hon. Where are you? I thought you'd be here by now."

"Yeah…I'm sorry. I got a huge project I'm working on. But I'm leaving right now. I'll be there in…ten, ten to fifteen minutes. All right?"

Tiki nodded. "Hurry. I got a little surprise for you."

"Ooh, can't wait. See you soon." With that, he hung up.

Tiki giggled as she put away her cell phone. Sarah said, "You have a very special man. I hope you know that."

Tiki blushed and nodded. Looking at her friend, she saw Sarah put all the trash into one garbage bag. Tiki came over and took the bag from her. "Let me take that out."

Sarah looked her over with the outfit she was wearing. "You…take the trash out…in the alley…with THAT on?"

Being extremely stubborn, Tiki swung the bag over her shoulder and headed for the back door. "Don't worry about it."

Sarah was skeptical but her boyfriend Blake called her over before she could do anything. 'Tiki can take care of herself,' she told herself. 'Nothing bad will happen.' She was wrong.

---

Tiki sang part of one of her favorite American song as she slammed the trash lid down when she heard a clatter behind her. She looked behind her and saw nothing. Being a little spooked, she went a little faster to the door. But before she could touch the door handle, someone grabbed her from behind and clamped his hand over her mouth to keep her from screaming. Before she could do anything, she dragged away into the darkness.

---

A few minutes later, Sarah started to get worried. So she told Blake, "Something's wrong. Tiki's not back yet. It doesn't take this long to take out the trash."

Blake said, "Don't worry. I'll find her." With that, he left outside the back door. Sarah said to herself, "I sure hope Tiki's alright."

Blake looked outside the door and didn't see Tiki anywhere. "Tiki?" he called out. "Tiki?" Looking down, he saw Tiki's cell phone and lucky charm bracelet and panicked. He knew that she never went anywhere without them. "Tiki!" he yelled.

Fearing the worst, he raced back inside. He ran into Sarah who said, "What's wrong? Where's Tiki?"

"We have to call the police," is all he said as he opened Tiki's cell phone and called emergency. Sarah looked on, frightened, as Blake got through. "…Yes, I need to report an emergency. …There's been a kidnapping. …Her name is Tiki Kaiba. …She was taken a few minutes ago. …We're at the Harmony Theater on Geisha Street. …Yes, thank you."

He closed the cell phone and held Sarah, who was crying. "It's alright. Tiki will be fine.

Sarah looked at him. "Why didn't I stop her? I knew she would run into trouble and I still let her go. And now…"

Blake held her until the police came. Once they got all the information, they did a little investigation of the alley. While they were waiting, Sarah and Blake saw Kaiba coming up to them. He said, "Hey, guys. Where's Tiki? I want to see my surprise."

Sarah started to whimper again and Blake hugged her tightly. Kaiba immediately knew that something was wrong. "What's going on?"

Blake was about to explain when Kaiba's cell phone rang. He picked up and said, "Yes?"

"I have your wife," said an evil male voice.

"What?" Kaiba almost yelled. "Bring her back!"

"Seto! Help me! Help!" Tiki screamed on the other line. Kaiba then heard something like a slap and Tiki whimpering. The man yelled, "Don't you speak again!" He then turned back to Kaiba and said, "You want your wife back?"

"Yes! I want her back now!" Kaiba yelled.

"Temper, temper. If you calm down…I just might harm this pretty little face of hers," the man said.

Kaiba then calmed down a little, though his anger was growing rapidly. "What do you want? Money? I'll pay you anything you want. Just bring Tiki back."

The man chuckled. "I don't want your money. But I will return your wife…when I'm finished." With that, he hung up.

Kaiba was confused by what the man said. "What did he mean by he'll return her when he's finished?"

"I might know," said a female off in the corner. All three of them looked and saw a black-haired girl standing there in the shadows. "My name's Kerri…and I think I know what's going to happen to her. I've been through it myself."

Kaiba went over to her and said, "What's going to happen? He's not going to kill her, is he?"

Kerri shook her head. "Not physically." Seeing Kaiba's confused face, she said, "He's going to destroy her mind and her spirit. He's going to destroy her soul." Kaiba still didn't get it so Kerri sighed and said flat out, "He's going to rape her."

Kaiba was stunned. So were Sarah and Blake. Kerri didn't add anything more but was obviously waiting for someone to talk. Finally Kaiba found his voice. "Is there anything we can do?"

Kerri shook her head. "Unless he doesn't wash her or she doesn't wash herself, then there's nothing."

"But she can identify him, right?" Kaiba asked, looking for that little glimmer of hope.

Kerri shrugged. "She'll probably be too ashamed to do anything. Besides…he'll probably make her too scared to do anything."

Kaiba was starting to feel very sick. "Are you saying…there's nothing we can do?"

Kerri shrugged again. "It's up to her."

This was way too much for Kaiba. He had to sit down and hold his head. Sarah came over and said, "We'll stay until that man returns her."

Kaiba shook his head. "I need to be alone."

Blake said, "We're not leaving. Tiki is our friend and we need to be there for her…and for you."

Kaiba sighed deeply as he sank into a mild depression. "Fine…" was all he could say.

---

A few hours later, the three of them were still waiting. The police had left a long time ago because they didn't found anything in the alley to help them. But they did leave an officer behind to arrest her rapist. Kaiba was extremely upset as he stewed in both his anger toward her rapist and self-guilt. 'Why didn't I leave on time? Why did I let that stupid project make me lose track of time? I should have been here. If I was…"

Just then, the door to the alley way opened and Tiki fell to the floor. Kaiba was stunned by how she looked. She still had on her costume but it was ripped up. She was covered with bruises and blood. She was crying and struggling not to scream. He rushed to her side but she pulled away. "No! Don't touch me!" she almost yelled.

Kaiba kept his hands back but said, "Tiki…it's me."

Tiki looked up and saw Kaiba. Whimpering, she clutched him and screamed. He held her and came to the realization that the two of them were about to embark on their toughest journey ever.

How tough will the journey be? Find out next time!


	24. The only way out…or is it?

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 24: The only way out…or is it?

A month later, Tiki was still very depressed. She refused to leave her room and refused to let any guy touch her. She constantly showered to clean herself but nothing seemed to help her. Kaiba tried to give a little help but she refused any help at all, saying that she didn't deserve any help. The female officer did check her but she had already been washed, so there was no evidence. She also refused to say what the rapist looked like because he had threatened her and her family.

Everyone else knew how depressed she was and tried everything to cheer her up. The boys tried doing anything they could from outside her door but she would just scream at them to go away. Mai and Serenity kept suggesting having an all-girls day. Tima tried doing anything she could think of to just talk to Tiki. But Tiki refused to leave the house in fear of seeing her rapist again.

Finally Tima snapped and arrived at Kaiba's mansion with a look of pure anger on her face. Mokuba, who was visiting to check on Tiki, tried to get her to leave but she just pushed him out of the way. He called after her, "Tima, don't bother! She won't even let Seto go near her!"

Tima paused and looked down at him. "That's why I'm here! She needs to remember that Kaiba is not like that fiend! No one can convince her like I can! Believe me; I know what I'm doing!" With that, she continued to head for the room.

Mokuba continued to follow her. "Do you think you can make her think otherwise?"

Tima stopped and sighed. "I…I honestly don't know. But…I have to try. She can't live her life in fear of men."

Mokuba nodded. Tima added, "Sorry about snapping at you."

Mokuba waved it off. "It's OK. Anyone else who cares for Tiki as much as you do would have reacted the same way."

Tima nodded and got in front of the door to the bedroom. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door and said, "Tiki? It's me. Can I come in?"

To their surprise, there was no answer. Getting a little concerned, Tima knocked on the door again. "Tiki? Are you OK?"

There was still no answer so Tima tried the door. To their surprise again, the door was unlocked which was very unusual. Tiki had always kept the door locked, which made Kaiba sleep out in the living room. Now Tima and Mokuba were extremely confused. They made their way inside and found the whole room completely dark. Mokuba found a light switch and turned it on. Looking around, their eyes grew wide, for they didn't expect to see what they saw.

The whole room was a mess. The small tables were turned over. Books and some ripped out pages were scattered everywhere. Pillow stuffing was in one corner and the pillow casings were on the opposite corner. The bed's blankets were halfway off the bed, as if Tiki tried to pull them off and gave up. Only one pillow remained and it looked wet even from their distance from it. From where they were, it looked like there was a note attached to it.

Mokuba made his way through the mess and took the note from the pillow. Reading it, his eyes grew wide. "What does it say?" Tima asked as she made her way to him.

Mokuba just handed the note to her. Raising her eyebrow, Tima took the note and read it. It said in Tiki's handwriting;

"Whoever finds this note, be sure to tell Seto that I love him and that I always have. But I must do this to escape this sadness. I'm sorry; there's no other way. Tiki."

There were some wet spots on the note, as if Tiki had cried while she wrote this. Tima knew immediately what Tiki was planning and ran out of the room. Mokuba followed her.

---

At KaibaCorp, Kaiba was having a busy day. There was a pile of work to be done and the pile continued to grow. Groaning, he was about to attack another project when his secretary walked in. "Excuse me, sir. I know you're busy—"

"Then let me work," Kaiba snapped without looking at her.

"But sir, it's an emergency," the secretary said with urgency in her tone. "We have a jumper on the roof and—"

"Another one?" Kaiba asked and rolled his eyes. The jumpers had become more common nowadays and his building was the most popular because his was the tallest. Unfazed, he said, "You know the routine. Call the police and tell them what you know."

"But sir—" the secretary said but was cut off by the phone. Kaiba picked it up. "Yes?"

"Kaiba, we got an emergency! Tiki's missing!" Tima's frantic voice sounded on the other end.

Kaiba sat up when he heard this. "What? She's missing?"

Tima said, "Yes, I was just at your house. We need to find her right away. I fear she's going to kill herself!"

Now Kaiba was really paying attention. "What? What gives you that idea?"

Tima took out the note and read it to him. Kaiba was stunned. "I'll be right there!" With that, he hung up and started for the door. "Is something wrong, sir?" his secretary asked.

Kaiba nodded as he pushed her out of the way. "Yes, my wife is missing and might be suicidal."

The secretary burst out, "Sir, she's the jumper!" Kaiba froze and looked at her. "Why didn't you mention this sooner?" he growled.

The secretary backed up a little. "I'm sorry, sir. It's just…" She didn't get to finish for Kaiba had left for the stairs to the roof at top speed.

---

On the roof, Tiki was standing on the edge. She looked like a complete mess. Her face was red and shiny from constant crying. She was extremely thin and had black circles under her eyes. She looked down and slightly chuckled. "This sure brings back memories. This is where Seto confessed his feelings for me…where we first got together."

As if on cue, Kaiba opened the door to the roof and saw her on the edge. Feeling deja vu, he said, "Tiki, stop!"

Tiki smiled a sad smile and turned around. Looking at him calmly, she said, "It's ironic, isn't it? Here we are at the spot where we first got together. Who knew that it would also become the place we would…drift apart?"

Kaiba took a few steps forward and held his hand out. "Don't do this, Tiki. We can overcome this…together."

Tiki shook her head and took a step back. "No, we can't. This is the only way to erase the pain. I'm sorry, Seto."

Kaiba continued to come toward her with his hand reaching out to her. "No, this isn't. There are other ways. Please…just—" Before he could finish his sentence, Tiki leaned back and started to fall. "Tiki, no!"

Tiki just closed her eyes and waited for the pain that would take her away. She felt herself stop and thought to herself, 'That's odd. I shouldn't have landed so soon. And where's the pain?'

Opening her eyes, she saw the sky and the building roofs. She then realized that she was hanging from KaibaCorp. By what, she didn't know. She just knew that she was still alive and that her right arm was killing her. As she was wondering what was going on, she heard Kaiba call out, "Tiki, hang on!"

Tiki looked up and saw that Kaiba was holding her arm. She then realized that he had stopped her from going all the way to the ground. Using all his strength, he pulled her until she was over the edge and out of harm's way. Looking at him stunned, she started to cry again. "No…no…no! Let me die!"

With that, she tried to climb up on the edge but Kaiba kept her back. She kept screaming for him to let her go until finally he turned her around and slapped her across the face. She stopped and looked at him shocked, holding her cheek. Kaiba was struggling not to cry as well but he wasn't succeeding. "Forgive me…but you need to shut up for a minute and hear me out! You can't kill yourself. If you do, then that monster will have won. Stay with me and I'll get you all the help that you need."

Tiki started to shake her head slowly as she got up. "There's no point in my living anymore! Who's going to miss me?"

Kaiba looked at her shocked. "You think no one will miss you? Let me prove you wrong."

Tiki took him up on his challenge. "All right. Fine then, who will miss me?"

Kaiba slowly went up to her and she didn't back down. "Audiences will miss a talented actress and singer. Your friends will miss one of their best friends. Your family will miss a wonderful sister. Your daughters will miss a mother. These are all people who will mourn your death. But…there's someone else who will be the most effected by your death."

Before he could continue, he hugged her tightly and Tiki didn't tense up like she used to. "It's me. I'll miss you most of all. I can't be without you. You are my light in this dark world. Without you…I can't bear to think of it."

Tiki hugged him back and whispered, "Help me…"

Kaiba smiled and looked at her. "That was my plan from the very beginning."

Tiki smiled a small, sad smile and kissed him. Kaiba was surprised but kissed her back. He figured that their journey down this road was over. He was wrong; they were only halfway down that road.

What's on the other half? Find out next time!


	25. A trip of solitude

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 25: A trip of solitude

A week later, Tiki was a little better. She was still very depressed but she was getting through everyday without thinking about what happened all the time. She let Kaiba come back into their room but she still wasn't ready for anything romantic. Kaiba would often remind her that he was not like the fiend. But she would always respond, "I know. But you're still of the opposite sex and they make me think of him."

Kaiba was very hurt to hear that comment from her. One day Tima came to visit them and he told her what Tiki had told him. "This is getting very painful. I hate it that she is comparing me to her rapist."

Tima said, "This response is not unusual from a rape victim. After the event, they only see their rapist in every male person. It doesn't matter if the man is a stranger, a family member, or even a loved one. All they think about is that they are men and that reminds them of their rapist."

Kaiba didn't like to think about that. "Is there anything I can do to make her remember that not all men are like that?"

Tima shrugged. "We can only do so much. But she has to remind herself that you would never do anything to hurt her."

Kaiba agreed. He looked up the stairs and hoped that he could help his wife so that she would return to the happy woman he knew and loved. He figured that giving her counseling and constant loving would help her break out of her shell. He was right for one point but he thought that he would give her the help that she didn't. He was wrong; a completely separate group would help her instead.

---

One rainy night Kaiba returned home from work a little later than usual. He knew that Tiki would give him a teary lecture for being late since he was also late when she was raped. But he was prepared for what Tiki would give him. 'Well…may as well just take the lecture quietly. After all…no one can blame her for freaking out like she does.'

But when he opened the door, Tiki wasn't waiting for him. Instead Lily was there, looking like she was ready to burst into tears. Kaiba immediately became worried. "Lily, what's wrong? What happened?"

Lily held up a note and choked out, "Mom…is…is…is…"

Fearing the worst, Kaiba asked, "Mom is what?"

Lily couldn't answer at first. She just collapsed into his arms and cried her eyes out. Kaiba comforted his daughter until she settled down a little. He then said, "Now, breath slowly and answer my question. Where's your Mom?"

Lily slowly shook her head as she murmured, "She's gone…"

Kaiba's eyes grew a little wide when she said that. "Gone? What do you mean, gone?"

Lily looked at her father and said, "I don't know. She just left without any explanation."

Kaiba still wanted to know that Tiki was alright so he asked, "When you say 'left', do you mean as in a trip or as in—"

Lily pulled back shocked. "I mean as in a trip! She just came downstairs with a suitcase, handed me this note, told me she loved me and good-bye, and left! What do you think I'm talking about?"

Kaiba was torn. Half of him was relieved that Tiki was still alive and didn't kill herself. But the other half was greatly confused. Remembering the note, he said, "Let me see the note."

Lily wiped her eyes and handed him the note. Kaiba noted that the note was in Tiki's handwriting and read what it said.

"Seto, I'm sorry but I have to leave for a while. I happened to overhear you the other day and realized how you really feel about me. Unable to face that type of future, I've decided to make the process a little easier for you. After a while, I may tell you where I am but I can't tell you right now. Until then…Tiki"

Kaiba was even more confused by Tiki's note. "What does she mean how I really feel about her? I love her!"

Lily said with attitude, "Maybe she had doubts right now."

Kaiba snapped, "Don't state the obvious! And go to your room!"

Lily was greatly angered by his outburst. "What did I do? I tell you that my Mom is missing and you take your anger out on me? That is not fair!"

Kaiba looked at her hard and said plainly, "Life isn't fair. Now just…go to bed."

Lily sighed and headed upstairs. Kaiba stayed in the hallway and felt his anger boil in him. Finally he headed upstairs and into his room. Seeing all of the trinkets that reminded him of Tiki, he took all of them and stuffed them in his closet. "If she wants to forget about me…then I'll forget about her!" he growled.

As he was saying this, a few tears escaped. He roughly wiped them away and looked outside, watching the rain bang against the window. But doing that reminded him of the night that he proposed to her and when they became one. Turning to the side a little, he punched the wall. Massaging his hand, he quickly went to bed.

---

The next morning, Kaiba got up as if nothing was wrong. But there was a dramatic difference in his attitude. He had turned back into the miserable, angry soul that he had when he was a teenager. He went into the bathroom and took a long look at himself. "Yes…this is better. Forgetting her is the best thing I can do," he convinced himself.

After getting dressed, he headed down and found his daughter sitting in the kitchen. Seeing her father, Lily immediately got up and bowed her head a little. "Dad, I'm sorry I snapped at you last night. It's just…with Mom gone and everything—"

"Don't mention her again," Kaiba said monotone. Lily looked at him in confusion. "What?"

Kaiba turned back to Lily. "Don't mention your mother ever again as long as you live in this house. That is the new rule that will be in play as of now."

Lily was shocked. "Dad, what is wrong with you? Mom is—"

Kaiba pointed at Lily. "I thought I told you never to mention her again."

Lily was on the verge of erupting. But she kept her feelings inside. "Dad, why do you want to forget…_her_? _She_ is missing and we need to find _her_! Aren't you going to do anything?"

Kaiba glared at his daughter, which made Lily back up a little. "What would you propose I do? She has made it very clear that she doesn't want to be found! Since that's how it is, I'm not going to do anything about it!" With that, he stormed out and slammed the door on the way out.

---

From that day on, Kaiba continued to act like he did before he met Tiki. But now it was even worst than before. He would yell at almost everyone who "bothered him". He hid everything that reminded him of Tiki. He continued to forbid Lily to speak of her mother. He was literally trying to forget her. But he didn't know that something would happen to make him realize how stupid he had been acting.

What event will bring Kaiba to his senses? Find out next time!


	26. Lectures and locations

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 26: Lectures and locations

Five months later, Kaiba was still acting like his old self. He had completely cut off all ties to his friends and to Kisara. He had also made Lily miserable with his new rule of never mentioning her mother. He acted like a jerk to everyone. But he was really hiding how he really felt. He was miserable but he had put on his cold mask and refused to let anyone see this side of him.

More than anyone else, Tima and Lily knew how much he missed Tiki. Lily knew how much he loved her mother and knew just how broken down he was. Tima also knew how much he loved Tiki because of how different he was around her, especially before they got together. But she and Lily were convinced that Tiki would never contact them again. They were wrong.

---

The day started like any other for Kaiba. He was miserable, grouchy, and piled with work. He was working on an important project when he heard a commotion outside his office. A security guard told someone, "Ma'am, you are not allowed in there!"

A female yelled, "I don't care! I'm going in!"

Kaiba recognized the voice and sort of braced himself. The door flew open and there was Tima, looking angry and out of breath. She started to go to him but two security guards quickly grabbed her. She struggled and said, "Get your hands off! Kaiba, call them off me now!"

Kaiba didn't react. He just went on with his work and said emotionless, "Men, remove her from the building."

The security guards responded and started to drag her from the office. Tima continued to struggle as she kept on yelling. "Kaiba, you're making a big mistake! Get these guys off me! You don't understand! I know where your wife is!"

Kaiba reacted to that. He looked up and said to the security guards, "Leave us."

The security guards let Tima go, bowed, and left the room. Tima growled at them as they left and shut the door. She then turned back to Kaiba and saw that he was still working. He just said without looking up, "Where is she?"

Tima groaned, went up to his desk, and swept all his work onto the floor with her hand. Kaiba looked at her and said, "Hey, what was that for?"

Tima just sat down on the chair in front of his desk, crossed her arms, and gave him a cold stare. Kaiba stared her down and said, "Are you going to tell me where Tiki is?"

Tima looked at her nails and said, "I don't think I will."

Kaiba was surprised. "Why not?"

Tima turned her head to the window and said, "I don't think you deserve to know where she is."

Kaiba stood up and said, "I have every right to know where she is! I'm her husband!"

Tima looked at him with anger in her eyes. "Right…you're her husband. Her husband whom has tried to completely destroy her memory!"

At first, Kaiba tried to act like he was innocent. "What are you talking about?"

Tima stood up and faced him head-on. "I know all about your putting away everything that reminds you of your wife. Also, I know that Lily is forbidden to speak of her mother."

Kaiba sat back down and groaned. "How do you know about that?"

Tima continued to stare down at him. "Before I came here, I went by your house. Lily broke down and told me everything. When I told where her mother was, Lily wouldn't shut up about her. I would have been sooner but I wanted Lily to get her hurt out."

Kaiba sighed and ran his hand through his hair. "I…I didn't know."

Tima snapped, "Exactly! You're so hung up on her leaving that you've completely forgotten how your daughter feels! Don't forget that Tiki left her as well, not just you! Lily is probably the most broken up about this because she watched her Mother leave! Not being able to talk about what happened has truly affected her! Now why have you forbidden her from speaking of Tiki?"

Kaiba sighed, knowing that he was defeated. "Well…not thinking about her…or talking about her…it makes it easier. Seeing all the trinkets that remind me that she is gone. I just thought—"

Tima interrupted him. "You thought wrong. Not thinking about her has made it even tougher of you than her actually leaving. You need to remember her…starting with your favorite picture."

Before he could do anything, Tima opened a bottom drawer and pulled out a framed picture. It was of Kaiba and Tiki when they were young and still dating. They were hugging each other and laughing. Tima sighed, shook her head, and set the picture in front of Kaiba. "Look at this, Kaiba. THIS is what you should be. This is how you were…when you were happy. Do me a favor; start remembering that good time. I'll be waiting outside. If you don't come out in ten minutes…I'll tell Tiki that you don't care for her anymore."

With that, Tima left his office. Kaiba looked at the picture and picked it up. He sighed and said, "Why, Tiki? Why did you leave? I thought you were better…"

He felt his eyes water and was going to wipe the tears away but stopped. He remembered something Tiki had told him years ago when they were courting. He was struggling with his feelings one day and she had told him, "It's better to let your feelings out than to leave them in. It'll make you feel better…and also I can help you."

Kaiba nodded at that comment. "That's right…but…you're not here to help me right now."

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and started to remember everything about the woman he loved. Their whole relationship flashed in his mind. By the time he was done, he was struggling with his tears. He took another look at the picture and he finally broke down. He cried out his hurt for a few minutes. When he finally settled down, he sighed and went outside to look for Tima.

To his surprise, she was sitting on a chair near his secretary's desk. Seeing his tear-stained face, she got up and asked, "Are you OK?"

Kaiba nodded and wiped his face. "Yeah…I am. Actually, I haven't felt this good in a long while."

Tima smiled a small smile. "That's good."

Kaiba smiled a sad smile as well. Tima noticed this. "Hey…you're smiling again."

Kaiba nodded. "Yeah…it feels good. So…where is she?"

Tima looked at the secretary and said, "Can we talk outside?"

Kaiba nodded. As he was walking out with Tima, he said, "I'm taking the week off."

---

In the elevator, Tima said, "Taking the week off?"

Kaiba smirked. "I think Tiki and I could use some time alone. Anyway, where is she?"

Tima smirked and took out a piece of paper. "She's still in the country. She just left this island."

"What island is she on now?"

Tima handed Kaiba the piece of paper and said, "She's in Kyushu. More specifically, Nagasaki."

When they reached the main floor, Tima asked, "So…are you going to get her?"

Kaiba headed for the door. "You bet I am. Also, I'm not leaving without her."

Tima grinned and opened the door. To Kaiba's surprise, Tima's children, seventeen year old Noah, fourteen year old brunette Mana, and eleven year old blond Adam, were waiting for them in front of the limo with a suitcase by their feet. Kaiba was stunned to see them. "Hi, guys! What are you doing here?"

Adam said, "What do you think? We're here to see you off."

Mana added, "We had to. Mom told us to."

Tima looked at Mana and she just shrugged. Looking at the kids, Kaiba noticed that there was one missing. "Where's your sister Jemima?"

Noah said, "She has a soccer championship this weekend. She's training all week."

Kaiba said, "That's too bad. I haven't seen her for a while."

Mana said, "Well, you don't want to late!"

Kaiba looked at Tima. "You planned this, didn't you?"

Tima said, "I knew that you would go after her. So I bought your ticket and…"

"…and went inside my closet and packed my suitcase," Kaiba finished.

Noah said, "No. Mom didn't pack your suitcase. Neither did we."

Kaiba said, "Then who did?"

Adam grinned and opened the door to the limo. There inside was Kisara and Lily. Kaiba smiled. Kisara said, "Ready to go, Dad? We're taking you to the airport."

Before he could get in, Mana handed him a CD. "Listen to this on the way."

Kaiba nodded and got in the limo. When the limo was out of sight, Noah asked, "Do you think she'll come back?"

Tima sighed. "I hope so."

Will Tiki come back? Find out next time!


	27. Tiki’s new life

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh or any of the plays mentioned, just the new characters.

Chapter 27: Tiki's new life

The plane finally landed in Nagasaki, Kyushu. Kaiba got out of it and looked around. He saw that it was close to the sea and he enjoyed the fresh air. Looking at a guide book he bought in Domino airport, he saw something that he didn't really appreciate. "She had to choose the second bombing site of WWII, did she? I wonder why here of all places."

Shaking the thought from his head, he hailed a cab and gave him the address. The driver light up as he heard the address. "Oh, you're going to see Myrilla!"

Kaiba raised his eyebrow as the cab took off down the road. "Who?"

The driver seemed surprised. "You've never heard of Myrilla?" When Kaiba shook his head, the driver chuckled. "She is Nagasaki's newest and greatest musical theater actress! She's part of the Kaydence Theater and she is awesome! I know it's a term used by children but anything else would be an understatement for her."

Kaiba asked, "What productions has she been in?"

The driver reached into glove compartment and pulled out a photo. Giving it to Kaiba, he said, "She's been in every production the theater has done ever since she showed up five months ago. I would have more photos to show but I only caught her after one performance."

Kaiba's ears perked up when he heard when Myrilla arrived. At first he paid it no mind and looked at the picture. It showed a girl with a skimpy dress with a dark-hair bob haircut. Her finger was shooting the camera and she was blowing a bubble from bubble gum. But he noticed that Myrilla had the same eyes as Tiki, despite the attitude. Kaiba put the picture on the seat next to the driver. The driver said, "By the way, that's not her real hair style. It's actually to her shoulder blades and reddish-orange."

Kaiba just nodded as the cab came up to an apartment building. He looked at the building a little confused and asked, "Is this the right address?"

The driver said, "Yes. Everyone knows where Myrilla leaves and the address you gave me was Myrilla's."

Kaiba groaned but got his bag out and paid the driver. When the cab drove off, Kaiba looked at the building and showed his disgust. "She went from rich to poor in a heartbeat," he murmured.

Shaking his head, he entered and made his way to the second floor. The first door to the left had the number that was on the address. He took a deep breath and knocked three times. To Kaiba's surprise, a man with black hair and green eyes opened the door. He said, "May I help you?"

Resisting the urge to just barge in, Kaiba asked, "Does a woman named Tiki Kaiba live here?"

The man immediately started to act defensive. "No! No one lives here by that name!"

Kaiba got suspicious. "What are you talking about?"

The man started to close the door but Kaiba stopped him. "What's the matter with you? I demand to see Tiki!"

The man said, "No one but guys from the theater group can see her as Tiki."

Kaiba blurted out, "I'm her husband! Now let me in!"

The man's eyes grew wide. "Oh…oh! Oh, you're—" Kaiba nodded and the man put his hand over his mouth in embarrassment. Opening the door, he let Kaiba in while saying, "I am so sorry. She and I are rather cautious when men outside of the theater group come asking for her by her real name. By the way, I'm Kevin."

Kaiba nodded his hello and looked around. The room was really bare. There was just a sofa, a couple tables, and a small kitchen. The door leading to another room had two small beds in it. Looking around, Kaiba said, "So…are you and my wife close?"

Kevin nodded as he made his way to the sofa. "Oh yes. We're very close. I consider us closer than most roommates."

Kaiba jumped to conclusions and grabbed Kevin by the throat. He pushed him to the wall and growled, "You two are close? Close as in…a relationship?"

Looking a little freaked, Kevin said, "No! Mr. Kaiba, I'm gay!"

Kaiba could tell by Kevin's eyes that he was telling the truth. He felt humiliated as he let Kevin go. He held his head as he felt his face grow red. "Oh…I'm so sorry. I just thought…"

Kevin waved it off. "Don't worry about it. A lot of people who don't know me would automatically think that." He then looked Kaiba over. "Don't mind me saying this but you're cuter than what she's told me."

Kaiba didn't know whether to be flattered or disgusted. So he was just polite. "Thank you. Tiki's told you about me?"

Kevin nodded. "Yeah. During her third month here, I couldn't get her to shut up about you. She's told me everything about you and her."

Kaiba smiled a little, feeling relieved that Tiki hadn't cut him out of her life for good. He asked, "Where is she now?"

Kevin looked at him. "Well, knowing 'Myrilla' as she calls herself now, she's done with rehearsal and is at her usual spot on the shore."

Kaiba was a bit surprised to hear this. "She has a spot on the shore?"

Kevin nodded as he put on his jacket. Kaiba asked, "Where are you going?"

Kevin opened the door. "I'm going to get her. You should come with me."

Kaiba said, "Don't need to tell me." With that, he dropped his suitcase and followed Kevin out the door.

---

As they made their way to the shore, Kaiba asked, "How has Tiki been during these five months?"

Kevin said, "Well…her first month didn't go very well but afterwards everything went smoothly."

Kaiba was just about to ask what Tiki's first month was like when they reached the beach. Kevin stopped and pointed toward the edge. Standing there was a girl that didn't looked like Tiki. She had reddish-orange hair down to her shoulder blades. She was five inches taller than Tiki. But the one thing that made Kaiba believe that it was a different girl was that she was wearing pants, which Tiki never did. He said to Kevin, "Is this a joke?"

Kevin shook his head. "No…she's changed dramatically during her stay here. Come on, I'll show you that it's Tiki."

Kevin went up to the girl from behind with Kaiba right behind him. When they got close to her, Kevin said, "Tiki? How are you doing?"

The girl didn't turn around but she did answer in a grown-up voice, which also told Kaiba that she was not Tiki. "Hi, Kevin. I'm really tired but I'm OK."

Kevin went in front of her and Kaiba stayed behind her. "I mean, how are you doing since you called Tima?"

She shrugged and said, "I'm…getting a little nervous. Nervous to see how Seto will act now that he knows where I am."

Kaiba's eyes grew wide for only Tiki says his name like that. Kevin smiled. "Well, I'll tell you how he acted. He's right behind you."

The girl slowly turned around and saw Kaiba. Kaiba looked into her eyes and knew that it was Tiki. Tiki laughed a little and gave Kaiba a big hug, knocking him over. "It's wonderful to see you, Seto!"

Kaiba smiled and hugged Tiki tightly. "I've missed you so much."

Tiki didn't answer and Kaiba looked to see why. To his surprise, she was asleep. "Unbelievable," he said. "We see each other for the first time in five months and she falls asleep."

Kevin said, "I can understand why. She's pulled three all-nighters."

Kaiba picked Tiki up. "Why did she do that?"

Kevin said, "The first two was getting the nerve to call Tima. Last night, she was worried about what you would do once you knew."

Kaiba and Kevin started back toward Kevin's apartment. "Why was she so worried? I would have thought she would be excited."

Kevin said, "Not necessarily."

"Why? What has been going on during these five months?"

Kevin didn't answer at first. They arrived at the apartment and Kaiba set Tiki down in her bed. Shutting the door, he asked Kevin, "All right, talk. Tell me how much Tiki has changed."

Kevin sat down on the sofa and was about to answer when his phone rang. "Hello. …Oh, hi, Vicky. …No, she's asleep and I don't think she's waking up anytime soon. …Yeah, I know. …Well, you'll have to take in her place. …Have fun. …Later." He hung up and explained, "That was a girl from the theater. She's the understudy in the production they're doing now."

Kaiba sat down next to Kevin and said, "What play?"

"The newest production in the US called 'Wicked.' It's the untold story to the witches of Oz. Tiki plays the wicked witch, the main character."

"Shouldn't we wake her up so she could be in the production?"

Kevin shook his head. "No, she was in it yesterday. The theater does a play every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday of the last weekend of the month."

Kaiba nodded. "So what has she been in?"

Kevin took a thinking position, which made Kaiba shudder. "Let's see…first month was 'Cats' and she was Grizabella, Rumpleteazer, and Demeter."

Kaiba light up. "She was in 'Cats'? She's always wanted to be in it. I wish I could have seen it."

Kevin smirked. "I taped it."

"Isn't that illegal?"

"I didn't get caught and Tiki asked me to do that. Besides, I just taped the scenes where Tiki had a spotlight appearance."

"Oh. What else has she been in?"

"Hmm. Second month, 'Chicago' as Velma. Third month, 'Phantom of the Opera' as Christine in the last performance. Fourth month, 'Beauty and the Beast' as Belle. And you know about this month."

Kaiba looked a little sad. "Wow. She's been in a lot of great plays and I missed everything."

Kevin said to himself, "According to her, you don't care?"

Kaiba growled, "What?"

Kevin said, "Well…she said that you were going to divorce her."

Kaiba got up in his anger. "What? Where did she get that idea?"

Kevin looked surprised. "You didn't come to deliver the divorce papers?"

Kaiba was insulted. "No! I came to take her home! Why would she think that I would even consider divorcing her?"

Kevin shrugged. "I don't know. She didn't want to talk about it. With all the stuff she went through her first month here, I didn't want to press it."

That reminded Kaiba of what Kevin said about the first month. Sitting back down, he asked, "What happened during the first month?"

Kevin sighed as he started to remember. "First of all, I'd like for you not to interrupt while I'm talking unless I pause." Kaiba nodded and Kevin continued. "She was the outcast of the group. Not because she was new but because of what that man told everyone. He told everyone a half-story about what happened to her. He told everyone where she was when she was taken and what she was wearing but then he added a lie. He told everyone she was a prostitute."

Kaiba's eyes grew wide and he silently growled. With Kevin's pause, Kaiba asked, "Who was this man?"

Kevin sighed. "Her rapist." Kaiba's eyes grew wide and looked ready to erupt when Kevin said, "Don't worry; he's in jail now. Let me continue."

Kaiba nodded, relieved that the criminal was now behind bars, and Kevin continued. "Because he was a respected actor in the theater, everyone believed him and shunned Tiki every chance they could. Tiki did a lot of things to get on everyone's good side. When she found out that they were going to do 'Cats,' she somehow got the original costumes, wigs, and make-up from the production that was videotaped. No one's sure how she did that. Everyone was grateful but they still hated her.

"Tiki tried to survive by devoting herself to her acting and her teaching. She became a voice teacher to two sisters in the theater; fifteen year old Vicky and eighteen year old Mary. Oh, how they loved her and they still do. She's a wonderful teacher. She also became their mother in a way. They told us that their real mother died when they were young. Anyway, Tiki told Vicky and Mary the truth and they told their father. Once they learned the truth, they tried to tell everyone but everyone didn't listen.

"Finally, at the first performance, Tiki tried to give her best but everyone still showed that they hated her. One man Alfred showed her more than anyone. His character was supposed to scratch Tiki's character. He really did scratch her when he was supposed to pretend. I was in the audience (obviously) and I could see that their hate was killing her. But we didn't found out until later that someone else felt her pain.

"His name is Matthew and he didn't believe the rapist at all. But no one listened because he was also an outcast for his lack of talent compared to his twin brother. Anyway, he watched Tiki sing at the end of the first act. He and I were surprised to see a few tears escape her eyes. I knew she was hurt so I used my pass to talk to her during the intermission. I'm not going to tell you what happened next. I'll let you listen. I accidentally recorded what happened. You can listen to this."

He took out a tape from under the sofa and put it in a tape player. Kaiba listened intently as the tape began to play. First there was Kevin's voice. "Are you alright?"

Tiki's voice sounded and she sounded depressed. "Yeah…yeah, I'm OK."

Then an unknown male voice sounded. "Myrilla…good job on the song. It sounded beautiful."

Kevin explained, "That's Matthew."

There was a pause in the tape until Tiki sounded. "Th-Thank you."

Another voice sounded and it wasn't friendly. "Don't bother to thank her, Matthew. If you want to compliment her, just pay her since that meant she did a good job in her last job."

Kaiba was infuriated at the voice as Kevin said, "That's Jonathon. He was the meanest to Tiki."

There was a longer pause on the tape until running feet sounded. Matthew growled and said, "Why did you do that? I was just trying to give her a little compliment."

Jonathon chuckled. "Like I said, pay her."

Kaiba couldn't listen anymore so he turned off. Kevin saw this and decided to tell him the rest. "After that comment, Vicky went up to Jonathon and slapped him. While everyone was wondering why she did that, she and Mary told everyone the truth about Tiki. That included what REALLY happened, who she really was, and why the rapist lied to them. At first, they didn't the young girls but I showed them a picture of the old Tiki and the one they knew. Looking at them, they realized what Vicky and Mary were telling the truth."

Kaiba asked, "How did they react? Did they even care?"

Kevin chuckled. "They were stunned…and ashamed. But they did apologize. Oh, I'll never forget it. It was, by far, Tiki's best performance. They planned to apologize after she sang her final song. But when they saw her come out, that tore them apart."

"Why?"

Kevin ran his hand through his hair. "She looked ready to burst into tears. And they knew as well as you and I know that she doesn't pretend when it comes to sadness. Anyway, she did shed a few tears during her song and broke down during the pause. When Vicky sang her part and Tiki did her second half of the song, the tears came down her face like a river."

Kaiba closed his eyes, seeing such an image in his mind. He then asked, "Did they apologize?"

Kevin smiled. "Mouthed apologizes during the second-to-last song. Oh, Tiki was so surprised but she was happy for the first time during that month. Afterwards, everything's been going upwards for her. Her rapist was arrested two days later, she got a bunch of new friends, and she became the female leader in the theater. Everything is perfect for her. She can tell you that when she wakes up."

Kaiba nodded and then yawned. He asked, "Do you mind if I sleep on the couch tonight?"

Kevin shook his head as he started for the door. "No, take my bed. I'm spending the night at a friend's." With that, he left.

Kaiba shook his head as he thought about everything he learned about Tiki. Going into the bedroom, he climbed into the other bed and looked at Tiki sleeping peacefully. As he drifted off to sleep, he thought, 'Why, Tiki? What possessed you to believe that I would divorce you?'

Why would Tiki think that? Find out next time!


	28. Reasons and departure

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh or any of the plays mentioned, just the new characters.

Chapter 28: Reasons and departure

The next morning, Kaiba woke up to the sound of singing. He looked and saw that Tiki was already up. She was standing in front of the mirror, doing dramatic poses and not paying any attention to what was behind her. She had her reddish orange hair in a braid and was using it to add more flirt to the poses. She had a piece of gum in her mouth which was evident from her chewing and occasionally blowing bubbles.

Kaiba looked at her outfit and was a little surprised. She was wearing jeans and a spaghetti-strapped red shirt. But what caught his attention was the tattoos on her body. She had a purple butterfly on her right shoulder, a rose on her left shoulder, and angel wings across her shoulder blades. "You got tattoos?" he asked as he stood up.

Tiki looked around and saw him up. "Good morning, Seto," she said in her new grown-up voice.

Kaiba said, "Don't change the subject. Why could you get tattoos?"

Tiki shrugged. "My friend Samantha and I wanted to get them. We got them two months ago. Do you like them?"

Kaiba hesitated. "Uh…I guess. Also, when did you start to wear pants?"

Tiki looked at herself in the mirror again. "My second month here."

Kaiba had one more question for her. "Why are you acting like you're still in high school?"

Tiki shrugged. "No one's complained. Besides, I was very happy back then." Turning back to Kaiba, she asked, "So did you bring them?"

Before Kaiba could answer, a guy with blond hair and green eyes entered the room. "Hey Tiki. You missed a great performance last night."

Tiki smiled and said, "I'm sure Vicky did a good job, Matthew."

Matthew slightly shuddered. "She did do great job. But I didn't enjoy that one scene. It doesn't feel right to kiss someone half your age. I would have rather kissed you."

Tiki shook her head and motioned to Kaiba. Matthew looked at Kaiba and said, "Oh, hello. I'm Matthew. And you are…?"

Kaiba's eyebrow twitched as he said, "I'm Seto Kaiba. I'm—"

"Oh, you're him!" Matthew interrupted. To Tiki, he said, "And you said he would just mail the papers. He actually came here." Turning back to Kaiba, he growled, "Just give them to her the papers and leave." With that, he left.

Kaiba was insulted by what he said. "What is that guy's problem? What did he mean by the papers?"

Tiki just said, "Just give them to me. Let's not drag this on and make it all teary."

Kaiba was surprised at Tiki's tone. It was really sharp, which was a tone she never used on him. "First of all, what papers are you talking about?"

Tiki blew a bubble from her gum. "The divorce papers. What else would I be talking about?"

Kaiba then remembered what Kevin told him yesterday about what she believed. "Why would I bring divorce papers with me?"

Tiki glared at him, which also surprised him. "You don't want to be married to me anymore. You've made it very clear to our friends that you don't love me anymore. You blame me for what happened!"

Kaiba went to her and grabbed her shoulders. Tiki backed up and said, "Please…let's just start the process. Let's not drag it on."

Kaiba said, "You don't understand! I'm not here to deliver divorce papers! I'm here to bring you home!"

Tiki scoffed. "You expect me to believe that? Not after what I heard come from your very mouth!"

Kaiba hit the wall in his frustration. "What words did I say? What possessed you to believe that I would even divorce you?"

Tiki laid down on her bed and turned to her side with her back to Kaiba. "Cast your mind back to two days before I tried to jump off your building. When Yugi, Atem, and Mokuba came to comfort you?"

Kaiba was about to ask what she was talking when he suddenly remembered what she was talking about. He held his head as he realized why Tiki was acting this way.

---

_Kaiba was sitting on the couch, greatly frustrated, with Mokuba sitting next to him. Yugi and Atem were standing around. Yugi was the first to break the silence. "So…have you spoken to her?"_

_Kaiba just shook his head. Mokuba added, "She refuses to even let me come near her."_

_Atem said, "We should just keep trying to get through to her. She needs to be reminded that not all men are like that. She's seemed to forgotten that."_

_Kaiba said to himself, "You can do that yourself."_

_Atem heard him and growled, "Are you saying that you're not going to do anything to help Tiki? She's your wife, the one you've loved since day one! How can you just abandon her like that?"_

_Kaiba stood up in his anger and swung his fist behind him, breaking a vase. "You don't understand! You guys have no idea how I feel! How do you suppose I'll be able to face Tiki again? I can't!" He sat back down and covered his eyes. "I just can't…"_

_Mokuba started to comfort his brother as Yugi and Atem looked at each other, not knowing what to do. Little did they know that a pair of watery eyes was watching them between the open space between the door and the doorjamb._

---

Kaiba ran his hand through his hair. "Tiki…you misunderstand what I said."

Tiki snapped, "Oh, I didn't misunderstand! You blame me for getting myself in that situation! It was my fault!"

Kaiba went and sat down on her bed. "No…that's not what I was saying. You see…I said that I couldn't face you because…I blamed myself for what happened to you."

Tiki sat up, facing Kaiba. "What are you talking about?"

Kaiba looked away. "It makes sense that it's my fault. I was late to pick you because I let myself get distracted by a stupid project. If I had arrived on time, you never would have taken out the trash…and then…" He couldn't continue.

Tiki chuckled and gave him a little playful shove. "That's stupid to blame yourself. Even if you had arrived on time, I still would have taken out the trash. You of all people know how stubborn I am."

Kaiba chuckled as he nodded. Smiling, Tiki hugged his arm. "So…you still love me?"

Kaiba turned her head toward his. "What are you talking about? I'll love you until the day I die."

Tiki smiled the way that Kaiba knew before this whole mess started. Feeling much better, they kissed and felt their hurt melt away inside them. When they pulled away, Tiki saw that Matthew was watching them and he didn't look happy. Sighing, she went up to him and said, "I'm sorry, Matthew. We'll never happen. It's too bad; I was kind of looking forward to it."

Matthew just nodded as he left. Kaiba stood up and asked, "What was that about?"

Tiki looked at him. "Well…we had a little agreement. After the divorce was finalized…we were planning of going out."

That infuriated Kaiba and Tiki could see that. She went to him and said, "It was just going to be a test-run, so to speak. Believe me, I have no feelings for him. But…"

"…he likes you," Kaiba finished. Tiki nodded and was about to say something else when Kevin burst in on them. "Morning, people! Tiki, don't do anything this afternoon. Cathy wants us at her house at three."

Tiki's eyebrow raised. "Why? What's going on? What about rehearsal and the final performance?"

Kevin chuckled nervously and said, "Well…David left the keys out and a couple of teenaged boys got in and…burned the place."

Tiki gasped. "Oh no! That was everyone's second home!"

Kevin nodded. Kaiba asked, "What are they going to do for money?"

Kevin laughed. Tiki said, "Everyone has other jobs. They have them in case of something like this."

Kaiba nodded, showing that he understood. Tiki then said to Kevin, "Is everyone supposed to meet right now?"

Kevin nodded. "No, sometime around three. Also, after I told them about Mr. Kaiba being here and what he told me, they told me to make sure that he came."

Kaiba said, "Do I have to come?"

Tiki gave him a look. "Yes, you do."

Kaiba slightly groaned but didn't say anything because Tiki just hugged him. "Let's not think about that right now. Let's just talk to each other…to make up for these five months."

Kaiba nodded and they sat down on her bed. They stayed there for the rest of the morning, catching up on each other. Tiki was not happy to find out that he had tried to forget about her but forgave him. Kaiba was glad to hear all about her new friends and all the plays she had been in. At three o'clock, she grabbed him and Kevin and raced out the door. They didn't have to go very far until they found what looked like an expensive house. Kaiba asked, "What does this Cathy do?"

Tiki said as she went to the door and rang the doorbell, "She's a doctor."

Kaiba was a little impressed. The door opened and a woman with brown hair and black eyes opened the door. "Hi, Myrilla! Come in…and close your eyes."

Tiki slightly giggled as Kaiba covered her eyes for her. They walked into the room and Kaiba saw Cathy motion to more people that she was there. She then said, "OK, Myrilla…you can look now."

Kaiba removed his hands and twenty-five men and women yelled, "SURPRISE!"

Tiki slightly screamed but she was smiling. "You guys! What is this?"

A guy who looked like Matthew with brown hair and brown eyes came forward. Kaiba noticed that he had long, thin scars on his face. Four were going up across his face to the left and four went across his lower face. The guy said, "This is probably the last time we'll be able to be together like this. My brother thought we could go out with a bang."

Tiki looked around. "Where is Matthew, James?"

James shrugged. "My brother said he'll join us later. He says he's got a special surprise for you."

Kaiba looked a little surprised. "You're Matthew's brother?"

James nodded. "We're twins. And you are…?"

Kaiba said, "I'm Seto Kaiba, Tiki's husband."

James asked, "You're him? Did you bring the papers?"

Kaiba growled, "I am not here for that. I'm here to take her home."

James looked surprised. "Really?" Off Kaiba's nod, he said, "Oh. Too bad. We're going to miss a great actress in the theater."

A girl with red hair and brown hair came over. Kaiba noticed that she had the same tattoos as Tiki. Tiki said, "Hi, Samantha."

Samantha pulled a book from behind her back and said, "I arranged a little book for you and your husband. It's filled with your best performances so that Mr. Kaiba can see how you've been."

Kaiba was about to take the book when Tiki took it and said, "Not yet. You have to meet all my new friends."

Kaiba nodded and Tiki took him around. She first introduced all the women. The first was a blond with blue eyes named Valerie who was Tiki's best friend. Valerie's older sister was a brunette with brown eyes named Veronica. An older blacked haired woman with green eyes was named Miranda. A middle-aged woman with orange hair and brown eyes who was dressed like a teacher was named Kathy. A brunette with black eyes was Tammy. Two blond women in their twenties (one with blue eyes and the other with green eyes) were Katie and Corey. Kaiba was a little overwhelmed by all these women. "You've certainly got a lot of girlfriends."

Tiki just smiled and introduced all the men. A flirtatious-looking guy with black hair and eyes was Jonathon. Kaiba growled at him but Tiki pulled him away before he could kill Jonathon. The oldest man with graying hair was Samuel. An orange-haired man with brown eyes was Mark. A buff looking guy with red hair and black eyes was Daniel. An eighteen year old boy with black hair and blue eyes was Adam. Tammy's twin who had the same hair and eyes as her was Harold. A young guy with brown hair and eyes who was flirting with Katie was Alfred. A guy with muscles and reddish-brown hair and eyes was Trevor. A man with light brown hair and green eyes was Sam. A young, goofy guy with blue hair and green eyes was David. A young guy with black hair and green eyes was Harry. Tiki added, "He's the rapist's little brother." Off Kaiba's look, she said, "He's nothing like his older brother. In fact, after he found out, he's hated him ever since."

Even though he already knew, Kaiba asked, "Your rapist was here?"

Tiki said, "He's in jail. He played the villain in 'Cats.' That's how James got his scars."

Kaiba didn't understand. "What happened?"

Tiki sat down on the couch and Kaiba joined her. "Well…James played the lead cat and he fights the villain. Well, that fiend thought that James played the police on him and used real knifes for claws during the fight. But he was wrong."

"How so?"

"Matthew called the police. All the rapist heard was his voice and thought that it was James."

Kaiba nodded. "All right. We've met all your friends…and learned about James' scars. NOW can we look at the picture book?"

Tiki rolled her eyes. "Impatient. Sure; we'll look."

But before they could look through the book, two young girls came up to them. One was young with short red hair and brown eyes. The other was tall with long black hair and blue eyes. Tiki said, "Hi, you two."

The red head said, "Is it true? Are you really leaving?"

Tiki said, "Yes, Vicky. I'm leaving tomorrow morning."

Vicky said, "But why? We need you here. Right, Mary?"

The black haired girl said, "Well…do you really have to go?"

Tiki stood up and hugged them. "I don't belong here. I have my own home. Seto's here to take me home."

They seemed surprised at this comment. Vicky asked, "That's him?"

Tiki nodded. Mary said, "Hmm…he's cuter than you said."

Hearing this, Adam came over and hugged her. Vicky said in a teasing way, "Looks like your boyfriend's jealous."

Mary slightly blushed but leaned in close to Adam. Vicky giggled and went off to hang out with Corey and Katie. Looking around, Tiki saw Matthew standing there, looking at her a little sad. She turned to Kaiba and he said, "Go ahead."

Tiki nodded and went to Matthew. Everyone stopped and looked at them. Matthew said, "Hi…there."

Tiki said, "Hi. Thank you for arranging this party."

Matthew looked away. "Yes…you're welcome." Looking at her, he said, "Are you really leaving?"

Tiki nodded. "I'm going home."

Matthew hugged her tightly, making Kaiba's blood boil. He said, "Stay here. You can be happy here."

Tiki smiled and said, "Not really. I'm really happy around my Seto. I'm sorry. But…we'll always remain friends."

Matthew nodded as he let her go. Tiki smiled as James said, "Good job, brother."

Jonathon came up to Tiki. "Yes, Matthew. You're a brave man. It's not everyday you give up the girl you love for another man."

Tiki said teasingly, "This is from a guy who flirts with every girl around."

Jonathon smirked and flicked Tiki's forehead. The rest of the night, the friends talked about the plays they were in and even showing a few scenes for Kaiba.

From the play "Cats," they performed the opening number and the big dance number with Tiki playing the character from the second performance. From "Chicago," Tiki as Velma and five other girls did "Cell Black Tango." From "Phantom of the Opera," she as Christine, James as Raoul, and Matthew as the Phantom did the last number. Kaiba noticed that Matthew was more into it than his brother or Tiki. Kevin said, "Matthew thought that James liked Tiki. Always living in his shadow, Matthew refused to let his brother have her. But James is dating Valerie."

Kaiba nodded and continued to watch the scenes. From "Beauty and the Beast," Tiki as Belle, Jonathon as Gaston, and Matthew as the Beast played the last scene. Kaiba didn't really like the scene where Matthew and Tiki kissed but he kept quiet. As the final play from the latest play, Tiki, Valerie, James, Mary, and Matthew did a song and dance number. After all the scenes, everyone just hung out and talked up a storm until late at night.

---

Early that morning, Kaiba and Tiki left for their home. Vicky, Mary, Kevin, Matthew, James, and Valerie saw them off. It was a little rough to say goodbye to Matthew and Valerie but Tiki managed. Giving them a final goodbye, Tiki and Kaiba left on the airplane. Tiki was excited to see her family and friends again but she didn't know about the surprise waiting for her.

_By the way, I HIGHLY recommend all the plays I mentioned in this chapter._

What surprise is waiting for Tiki? Find out next time!


	29. Welcome back, Tiki

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

Chapter 29: Welcome back, Tiki

A few hours later, Tiki and Kaiba arrived back in Domino. Tiki took a deep breath and sighed. "I've missed this city."

Kaiba smiled and took Tiki's hand. "I've missed YOU. You didn't have to run like you did."

Tiki didn't answer Kaiba at first. Seeing Kaiba's limo out in front, she put her suitcases in the trunk and got in. Kaiba got in as well and said, "Why did you run?"

Tiki chuckled softly. "I was a coward. When I thought that…you were going to divorce me…I became scared. I couldn't think of a life without you. You were…and are…my whole life." Taking a deep breath, she said, "But Samantha helped me."

Kaiba became interested at this. "How?"

Tiki smiled. "Samantha has a major in theater. But she also has a minor in psychology. She said that she got it just in case her theater dream didn't work out. Once everyone learned the truth about me, she came to me, offering me help."

"And…?"

Tiki chuckled. "I broke down. We meet every other day after rehearsal for a month. It was her who suggested that I wear pants and cut and dye my hair."

"Why?"

"To bury the past. She thought that a change in my appearance would change how I felt about life. She was right. I felt just as happy as I was in high school. I told Samantha that I owed her big time. She had her…unique way…of me paying her back."

"What was that?" Kaiba asked.

Tiki took off her jacket to reveal her tattoos. "She wanted to get tattoos and she dragged me along. When I asked her why she brought me along, she said that this would be my way of paying her back.

Kaiba didn't understand and Tiki could see that as she put her jacket back on. "She decided that the tattoos would be the perfect to…seal our friendship for eternity. She's a big believer in things being eternal and in things being fate as well. Now, don't get mad at this…but she thinks that I was fated to get raped."

Kaiba did get mad at that comment. "What? Why?"

Tiki took his hand. "Samantha said that the event helped me get stronger. Also, she said that the event made me come to their theater, where I was able to help Matthew with his personal problems and also Mary and Vicky with their acting since they're going to continue to keep the theater alive." Seeing Kaiba's confused look, she chuckled. "I don't get Samantha's beliefs either but I say whatever floats your boat."

Kaiba shrugged and Tiki chuckled again. As they pulled up to the mansion, Tiki got out a CD from her carry-on bag. Seeing Kaiba's look, she said, "As you may know, Kevin filmed my first musical at that theater. I know; it was three days and I had different parts for each day. The first and third performance, Kevin just filmed when I had a singing part, when I was in the limelight. The second day, he filmed when I was in the limelight and everything else."

Kaiba smiled as he and Tiki went up to the front door. "Good. That way, I can see your performance…and so can our friends."

Tiki raised her eyebrow as Kaiba opened the door and covered her eyes. Feeling déjà vu, Tiki made her way inside and waited until Kaiba removed his hand. All of their friends and their children were their and yelled, "SURPRISE!"

Tiki yelped but then laughed. Tima came forward first and her eyes were wide. "What…did you do…to your hair?" she asked.

Tiki chuckled. "Fixed it up. You like?"

Tima hesitated at first but then nodded. Yugi then pointed out, "You're wearing pants!"

That surprised everyone but they weren't ready for the tattoos. But Tiki took off her jacket and hung it up, showing everyone all three of her tattoos. Kisara was the most stunned by this. "You got tattoos?"

Tiki smirked. "Did it with a new friend."

Lily was jealous but mad as well. "You told me that you would never get them. You also said that you would never run away. Do any of your promises mean a thing?"

Tiki sighed and hugged her youngest daughter. "I'm really sorry that I ran away. I wish that I never did that. But the past is the past. We can't hold onto our anger forever. I know I told you that growing up."

Lily smiled and hugged her Mother. "I missed you!"

Tiki said, "I missed you everyday. And I missed you too, Kisara. And all of you." Turning to her friends, she asked, "Can you forgive me?"

Atem nodded. "We already did."

Joey said, "We're just mad that we didn't get to see your performances."

Tiki grinned and held up the CD. "Well, this solves that problem. My roommate happened to film my first performance. We can watch it."

Everyone nodded and they all headed for the living room. Tiki popped in the CD and everyone enjoyed the recording. They recognized Tiki as either the old gray female, as the tiger-skinned female, or as the black and yellow female. They also noticed something about Tiki's performances. As the gray cat, she looked depressed and they knew that she never acted when she was sad. as the tiger-skinned cat, she looked like she was having a ball. As the black and yellow cat, she was having fun but looked scared, especially when her character talked about and faced the enemy. Kaiba explained why and where he was at the moment and everyone was relieved.

There were also some moments that stood out. When Tiki was the tiger-skinned cat, she and her partner, who was Daniel, got close. In one part of their song, Daniel leaned to the side and Tiki had jumped on his side. In order to keep her there, Daniel had his hand a little low. Kaiba didn't like that but Tiki pointed something out. "Look. I didn't freak out. He helped me conquer that fear." Kaiba calmed and continued to watch the recording.

As the black and yellow female, they could see the fire in Tiki's eyes when she faced the enemy. They also saw the attack on James, which gave him his present-day scars. While they were watching that particular scene, Tiki said, "He was lucky to get out with eyes…very lucky."

During the final scene, where Tiki was the old gray female, they could see the tears going down her face. When Vicky sang her part, Tiki sighed and whispers, "Bless her heart." When the Tiki in the recording sang the second half of the song, they could see that the tears were going down her face like a river. There seemed to be no end to them and that was hard to watch. But they saw all the actors and actresses mouth apologies as Tiki went to each. After the last song, Tiki popped the CD out of the player and turned to everyone. Tima said, "Wow…those were your best performances."

Everyone nodded. Kisara said, "Wish I would have seen you, Mom. My soccer team was in Nagasaki during your third month. I could have seen a performance."

Tiki shook her head. "You didn't have time. Your career is important."

Kisara nodded. Lily then said, "What else did you do over there? Don't leave anything, please."

Tiki smiled and told everyone everything. She talked about what she did, what her performances were like, who her new friends were, and what her life was like. after she was done, everyone just had fun for the rest of the night, making up for the five months that Tiki was gone. But they knew that she was better, she was happy again, and that she would never leave her family or her friends ever again.

_If you want to know what the cats looked like and who played them, send me a PM (with your email stated) and I'll send a page with the pictures and names._

One more chapter!


	30. Visiting Tiki’s parents

Confessions

By: Tima, Yami's wife

I don't own YuGiOh, just the new characters.

I thought that this would be a sad but sweet way to end the story.

Chapter 30: Visiting Tiki's parents

A month after Tiki came back, Tiki was back to her old self. She rejoined her old theater and apologized to everyone for disappearing like she did. She especially apologized to Sarah and Blake for that day. They accepted her apology. Sarah said, "We're just glad you're all right. I can't tell you the horrible thoughts I had about what might have happened to you." Tiki just smiled.

Another thing that Tiki came back to was the fact that Lily was now a junior in her high school and very popular. Not only that but she also had a boyfriend as well. Tiki was surprised at this but was able to give her the advice her daughter needed. Lily was grateful of that.

Kaiba figured that Tiki didn't have anything else weighing on her mind. However he was wrong. One morning, he woke up to find Tiki looking out of the window with a distant look in her eyes. He got up and asked, "Hey, are you OK?"

Tiki just nodded and said, "If you don't mind, I have an important errand to run."

"What errand?"

Tiki's eyes lowered a little as she said, "The cemetery."

Kaiba looked at Tiki, wondering why she wanted to go to the cemetery of all places. But he decided to not ask her. But he did ask, "Would you mind some company?"

Tiki smiled and nodded. "I would like that. Especially since she won't be there."

Kaiba raised his eyebrow and Tiki saw this. "I'll explain when we get there."

Kaiba nodded and they got ready. Lily met them in the kitchen and saw that Tiki was a little upset. "What's wrong, Mom?"

Tiki shook her head. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong."

Lily didn't really believe her mother but decided not to say anything. Looking at the clock, she said, "Oh, I got to meet my boyfriend! Bye Mom! Bye Dad!"

As she was leaving, Kaiba said, "Don't do anything I wouldn't!" Lily just nodded as she left.

Tiki chuckled. "Don't worry. Lily is smart when it comes to this sort of thing. I made sure of that."

Kaiba chuckled. They then left for the cemetery. They made it fairly smoothly but Tiki asked to stop at the flower shop. Kaiba followed her in as she looked around for the right type of bundle. She ended up getting a bunch of flowers. Seeing Kaiba's looks, she explained, "Each flower means something."

Kaiba nodded. "Oh. What do the flowers mean?"

Tiki pointed to each flower and explained. "Red flax means 'I deeply appreciate your kindness.' White hyacinth means 'I admire you.' White panay means 'you are ever in my thoughts.' Red rose means 'I love you.' Sweet-pea means "your memory is very sweet.'"

Kaiba nodded his head. "Interesting. When are you going to tell me who we're visiting?"

Tiki smiled a little. "When we get there and after I say hello first."

With that, the couple walked around, looking for a particular tombstone. They walked along the road until Tiki noticed a tombstone that was for two people. Sighing, she said to Kaiba, "Let me say hello first."

Kaiba nodded and Tiki went up to the tombstone. Sighing, she put the flower bundle on top of the tombstone. Rubbing the top of it, she said, "Hi. I'm sorry I haven't been by lately. All right, I'm sorry I've never visited. It's just…I've had a lot of things to deal with. I had my school work, which you know is very important. My friends and my brother and I…we've saved the world a number of times. Also…I wanted to help a special person. You're probably wondering who this person is. Well…at the moment, he's my husband. Yes, I am married…since I was eighteen. We have two wonderful daughters, Kisara (who's a successful soccer player) and Lily (who is very popular in her junior class). Unfortunately, I couldn't bring them with me. But I did bring the love of my life." Turning to Kaiba, she said, "Come on up."

Kaiba joined her and looked at the words on the tombstone. They stated "Tom Maydee and Trina Jones-Maydee." Kaiba turned to Tiki and asked, "Who are these people?"

Tiki sighed. "My parents."

Kaiba's eyes grew wide a little. "Oh. That's right. You said they died."

Tiki nodded. "Dad died before I was born and Mom died when I was three."

Kaiba nodded, remembering what it was like to lose parents, and put his arm around Tiki. Tiki smiled. "Thanks."

"You said that you haven't visited before. Why?"

Tiki shrugged. "Well…for one thing…I barely remember them. Even Rose barely remembers them. She was six when Mom died."

"Why now?"

Tiki chuckled. "Two reasons. One, I just dediced to come see them because I have no excuse as to not go. Second…look at Mom's date."

Kaiba bent down and looked. Trina's death date was the current date. Straightening up, he said, "I see. That does make sense." Seeing Tiki nod, he put his arm around her again. "It's OK. If you need to cry, go ahead."

Tiki sniffed and shook her head. "I'm OK."

Kaiba asked, "You sure?" Off Tiki's nod, he nodded as well. "All right. Let's head home."

Tiki said, "Give me a minute."

Kaiba nodded and waited by the side of the road. Tiki placed her hand back on the tombstone and said, "Bye Mom. Bye Dad. I'll come back to visit. I promise." Turning to Kaiba, she smiled, took his hand, and they took off for home.

_Fin_


End file.
